Belarus responsible for deportation of Ukrainian children, Kyiv says
The Ukrainian government has confirmed that
Moscow carries out forced
displacement of Ukrainian children through the territory of Belarus, with
full cooperation from Minsk authorities, Ukraine’s ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets
said at a press briefing on May 31.
"We have evidence that, with the direct participation of the Belarusian authorities, there has been forced displacement of both Ukrainian children, civilians taken hostage, and prisoners of war," said Lubinets.
Ukraine is investigating the role of Belarus in the deportation of Ukrainian children who were forcibly taken by Russia from occupied territories.
The Belarusian opposition has issued a report alleging that the Lukashenko government was involved in the illegal deportation of children from the territories of Ukraine occupied by Russia.
The report states that 2,150 Ukrainian children, including orphans between the ages of six and 15, were sent to so-called recreation camps and sanatoriums in Belarus. The children were brought to the Golden Sands sanatorium in the Homiel region, the Ostashkovskoe town sanatorium, and the Dibrova camp in Minsk.
Lukashenko personally approved the transfer of the children to Belarus and supported it in every way possible, according to the report.
On March 17, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Russian dictator Vladimir Putin and Russia’s children’s ombudsman, Maria Lvova-Belova, for their involvement in unlawful removal of children from Ukraine since Feb. 24, 2022.
On April 27, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe adopted a resolution recognizing the forced displacement of Ukrainian children to Russia as genocide.
Ukrainian authorities assert that Russia has removed nearly 20,000 Ukrainian children from the territories it currently occupies.
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