Russia agrees to send back some Ukrainian children: Admission of guilt?
Photo: Russia is ready to return some of the Ukrainian children (Getty Images)
Russia is preparing a list of children it is ready to return to Ukraine. The list may be handed over during the next round of negotiations, the Russian news resources RIA Novosti and Interfax report, citing Russia's Commissioner for Children's Rights, Maria Lvova-Belova.
Speaking at the St Petersburg International Economic Forum, Lvova-Belova announced that Moscow is already compiling a list of Ukrainian children it is prepared to send back to their homeland.
"We can speak of five individuals from this list who are already in the process and ready to be returned to Ukrainian territory," said Lvova-Belova.
Moreover, Russia's Commissioner for Children's Rights claimed that the children would be reunited with their relatives in Ukraine by the end of June.
"The delay in reunification was related to school - they are finishing the academic year and will return to their loved ones in Ukraine afterward," Lvova-Belova added.
Return of Ukrainian children
For the second round of negotiations between Ukraine and Russia, Kyiv prepared a written memorandum outlining all the conditions for achieving peace as soon as possible.
In particular, Ukraine's memorandum states that the return of Ukrainian children is one of the points aimed at building trust.
During the talks, the Head of the Russian delegation, Vladimir Medinsky, claimed there had allegedly been no mass deportation of Ukrainian children, asserting instead that it involved only "a few dozen or maybe a hundred" kids.
First Deputy Foreign Minister Serhiy Kyslytsya firmly refuted these cynical claims, stressing that since 2014, Russia has forcibly removed tens of thousands of children from Ukraine.
Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova responded by officially denying the abduction of Ukrainian children.
Furthermore, Zakharova emphasized that this issue should not be on the agenda if Ukraine wishes to continue negotiations.
So far, over 19,500 Ukrainian children have been officially identified as having been illegally deported by Russia, according to the Ukrainian Ombudsman.
