Crosses with children’s faces near the Russian embassy: Warsaw remembered the murdered children of Ukraine
Children who died in the Russian war against Ukraine became the central image of a memorial event held on May 9 near the Russian embassy in Warsaw. On a day when Russia traditionally uses the theme of World War II for its own political ideology, Ukrainian and Polish activists brought photographs of children whose lives were cut short by missiles, shelling, occupation and the violence of war to the Russian embassy.
Near the Russian embassy in Warsaw, activists placed an installation of hundreds of large and small crosses, on which were attached photographs of Ukrainian children killed by the Russian army. Dozens of Ukrainians, Poles and representatives of other nationalities took part in the action, who came to support Ukraine and remind about the price of war for the civilian population.
The organizer was the Public Initiative “Euromaidan-Warsaw”. The place for the action was chosen deliberately: the installation was installed near the embassy of the state, whose army has been waging war against Ukraine since 2014, and after a full-scale invasion, daily strikes on cities, villages, residential buildings, schools and hospitals.
The date of the action had a special significance, because on May 9, Russia is once again trying to present itself as a state that defeated fascism, using historical memory as a political tool. The organizers wanted to show the other side of this demonstration – the modern reality in which the Russian army kills Ukrainian children, destroys cities and deports minors from the occupied territories.
The installation with crosses became a visual response to Russian propaganda, because next to portraits of children it is difficult to hide the war behind solemn speeches, parades or official statements. The faces of the dead children reminded that for Ukraine this war is not measured by political formulas, but by specific names, families, destroyed homes and childhoods that can no longer be returned.
The leader of the Warsaw Euromaidan, Natalia Panchenko, explained that the crosses under the Russian embassy symbolize Ukrainian children who were killed by the Russian army.
“These crosses symbolize Ukrainian children who were killed by the Russian army… We want to remind the whole world that Russia is a terrorist state that is waging a genocidal war on the territory of Ukraine, that is committing war crimes and that must bear responsibility for this,” – emphasized the leader of the Warsaw Euromaidan, Natalia Panchenko.
She also noted that Russia violates international law every day, commits war crimes, tortures civilians, kills children, and destroys entire cities. In the context of this action, such words sounded like an explanation for each cross installed near the Russian diplomatic mission.
According to Panchenko, available data indicate that more than 700 Ukrainian children have been killed by Russia, more than 3 thousand have been injured, and more than 20 thousand have been illegally deported from the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine to the Russian Federation. These figures were one of the key focuses of the action, as they show the scale of crimes against the most vulnerable part of Ukrainian society.
The topic of children of war went beyond statistics, since each photo on the cross meant a separate story: a child who was supposed to go to school, return home, celebrate a birthday, grow up with his or her family. Instead, their faces ended up on an installation near the embassy of the country responsible for the war.
The organizers placed a special emphasis on Ukrainian children who were illegally deported to Russia. Ukraine demands their return, and representatives of public initiatives call on the international community to act more actively, because the deportation of children remains one of the most serious crimes of this war.
Panchenko recalled that for the deportation of Ukrainian children, Russian President Vladimir Putin was put on the wanted list on the basis of an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court in The Hague. This fact became an important part of the action, because the issue of abducted children concerns not only humanitarian aid, but also international responsibility for war crimes.
The installation with crosses remained available for viewing in front of the Russian Embassy throughout the day. For passers-by, it became a place of proof of the consequences of Russia’s war against Ukraine. The action in Warsaw showed that the topic of children of war remains one of the most painful in the international reminder of Russian aggression. Through photographs, crosses, and the presence of people near the embassy, the organizers were able to convey the main point: behind every number there is a child, and behind every child there is a family for whom the war changed their lives forever.
