Since Russia launched its war of aggression against Ukraine, at least 1 million Ukrainians* have been deported to the Russian Federation and the occupied territories of Ukraine. Among them, thousands of innocent Ukrainian children have been abducted by Russian forces to be adopted to Russian families. This is a clear violation of human rights and international law, including the Geneva Convention and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

As a result of the S&Ds’ initiative, the European Parliament will later today adopt a resolution condemning these atrocities, and calling to include all persons responsible into the next EU sanctions package. It also calls on Ukraine to ratify the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court in order to facilitate prosecutions of war crimes and crimes against humanity, including deportations. All European countries who have not done so yet, should sign or ratify the UN International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance.

Evin Incir, the S&D MEP and negotiator on this file said:

“It hurts when history repeats itself right in front of our eyes. Practices used by communist and the Nazi dictatorships are being used today by Putin's regime against the Ukrainian people. The deportation of thousands of innocent children, robbed of a peaceful childhood and from their families and country- this is a crime against humanity.

“We demand that all people behind these heinous deportations are immediately sanctioned. Putin must be stopped. Russia’s crimes against humanity must end. We must not allow for history to repeat itself in Ukraine, or anywhere else.”

Note to editors:

*The Ukrainian Parliament for Human Right (Ombudsman)