Yale University in the US tracked the fate of hundreds of Ukrainian children deported to Russia during the war. According to their findings, Vladimir Putin and other Russian officials “directly or indirectly” approved resettlement and forced adoption programs. 314 Ukrainian children who were subjected to such activities were identified.
The children ranged in age from 2 to 17 and were from Donetsk, Luhansk and Mariupol regions. Some of them were not orphans. The children were flown to Russia, where they waited for foster homes. Scientists obtained documents of 67 children who have already been naturalized as Russian citizens.
Scientists say thousands of children may have suffered a similar fate, but they have not been able to identify them with sufficient certainty. “In Russian databases, these children are presented as if they were from Russia,” the report said.
Russification of Ukrainian children. A report will be prepared and may be used in The Hague.
The document shows that the Office of the President of the Russian Federation directly funded the program. In addition to Putin, the report also mentions United Russia Party activist Anna Kuznetsova, Education Minister Sergei Kravtsov, and the heads of regional pro-Russian regimes in Ukraine's Donetsk and Luhansk regions.
“This is a more sophisticated crime than we originally thought,” Yale University researchers commented in their report, which provides strong evidence of Russian war crimes and which is being reported by The Hague's International Criminal Investigation Department. It added that it could be used to try President Putin in court. .
The Yale researchers will now submit their findings to the United Nations Security Council. The Humanitarian Institute at Yale University, which produced the report, is funded by the U.S. Department of State. Americans have already condemned Russia's treatment of Ukrainian children.
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