The return of Ukrainian children from Russia: did Qatar act as a mediator in a complex process
The problem of the return of Ukrainian children who were illegally taken to Russia is one of the most painful topics during the war. Despite the numerous appeals of the international community, this process remains extremely difficult and lengthy. In light of these circumstances, an important step was the initiative of Qatar, which acted as a mediator in the agreement on the return of the children.
On Thursday, September 26, Qatar announced the signing of a tripartite agreement with Ukraine and Russia on the return of thirteen children who were illegally taken away during hostilities. This was reported by a French newspaper The World citing a Qatari official who wished to remain anonymous. According to him, nine children and one adult will be returned to their families in Ukraine, and four more minors will be able to reunite with their families in Russia.
The age of children who return to Ukraine is from 12 to 17 years, while those who go to Russia are much younger – from 2 to 7 years. This agreement became an opportunity for families who had no news about the fate of their children for many months to reconnect with them. All the children will be met at the Qatari embassy in Moscow before being reunited with their families. Qatar, a mediator in the matter since July 2023, has helped repatriate Ukrainian children transported to Russia and Russian-occupied Ukrainian territory since the invasion began in February 2022.
Illegal removal of children: the scope of the problem
Abduction of Ukrainian children is a serious violation of international law and humanitarian norms. In 2023, the European Parliament expressed concern about mass cases of illegal deportation of children from Ukraine to Russia. According to their data, the number of forcibly removed children may reach 300,000. Forced displacement of Ukrainian children began in 2014 after the occupation of Crimea and part of Donbas. Thus, the scale of the problem is much larger than what we see now, and is a consequence of Russia’s long-term policy on annexed and occupied territories.
Ukrainian Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets said that as of September 2024, 931 children had been returned since the beginning of the full-scale invasion. In particular, at the beginning of the year, during the fourth meeting of advisers from the “Peace Formula” in Davos, he reported that it was possible to return 517 illegally deported children and 2,828 adults, among whom only 150 were civilians. These numbers testify to the scale of the problem and the need to unite international efforts to protect the rights of children who have become victims of aggression.
The number of abducted and missing children
According to official data of the Ukrainian Children of War platform, as of May 2024, at least 19,546 children were forcibly deported or relocated to Russia. Among them, 2,015 children are considered missing. This means that their whereabouts remain unknown and there is a strong possibility that they have been moved to other territories, changed their names or come under the influence of Russian social services.
The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyi, during his speech on the International Day of Innocent Children — Victims of Aggression, emphasized that many of these children do not even have the opportunity to contact their relatives. This causes enormous psychological pressure on families and deepens the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine.
Denial of information
On September 27, the Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights, Dmytro Lubinets, denied information about an agreement between Ukraine, Russia, and Qatar regarding the exchange of children. He called these statements a blatant promotion of Russian narratives and emphasized that no such agreement exists.
“In one of the foreign media, information spread that Qatar allegedly announced an agreement with Ukraine and Russia on the exchange of children. In fact, no one concluded any agreement. This looks like a frank promotion of Russian narratives.
Qatar acts as a mediator precisely in the return of illegally deported and forcibly displaced Ukrainian children, for which we are extremely grateful. At the same time, Ukraine has not abducted and does not keep Russian children on its territory, does not prevent their return to Russia if they are on our territory.
International humanitarian law does not provide for such a process as the exchange of children. What kind of cynicism does one have to reach in order to propose a similar mechanism for the return of Ukrainian children from deportation?”, – wrote Lubinets in Telegram.
