Return of deported Ukrainian children gains Global South support

This was stated in an interview with Ukrinform by Mariana Betsa, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine.

Commenting on the results of the high-level meeting of the International Coalition held this week in Brussels, Betsa said: “First and foremost, this concerns the expansion of the International Coalition as a coordination platform and mechanism to facilitate the return and reintegration of Ukrainian children. Panama, Switzerland, and Cyprus joined the Coalition. As a result, the Coalition now includes 49 countries and international organizations.”

She emphasized the particular importance of a country from the Global South joining the initiative.

“This indicates that the return of children is no longer merely a regional issue, but a broader, global and universal one. It is also a matter of universal responsibility,” the deputy minister told Ukrinform.

She added that another important outcome was the practical assistance provided by participating countries and international organizations.

“Above all, this includes sanctions imposed by the United Kingdom, the EU, and Canada against Russian officials involved in the abduction and deportation of children,” Betsa stated.

She explained that new assistance for various projects includes the European Union’s mobilization of €50 million to strengthen the overall child protection system, €10 million from Lithuania to counter the forced deportation of Ukrainian children, €1.4 million from Germany for social and psychological support, £1.2 million from the United Kingdom for the identification and return of Ukrainian children, as well as $3.4 million from Canada for the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission.

Canada also announced that it would host a high-level summit on the return of Ukrainian children at the end of September, Betsa added.

The deputy minister noted that a number of other countries also announced aid packages in the context of either reintegration or rehabilitation of Ukrainian children.

She also stressed that the next stage is extremely important for Ukraine – the effective implementation of the United Nations General Assembly resolution on the return of Ukrainian children.

“The resolution was adopted under very difficult conditions, but we received an unprecedentedly high level of support for such thematic humanitarian resolutions, because they are not always adopted within the format of the General Assembly in New York,” Betsa said, noting that the resolution encouraged the United Nations Secretary-General to make full use of his mandate to facilitate the return of Ukrainian children.

As reported by Ukrinform, on May 11, a high-level meeting of the International Coalition for the Return of Ukrainian Children was held in Brussels, bringing together representatives of dozens of countries and international organizations, including Kaja Kallas and Anita Anand, representing Canada as a co-founding country of the Coalition.