EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas said the European Union plans to introduce new sanctions against Russia over the deportation and forced transfer of Ukrainian children.
Details
On April 11, Kaja Kallas spoke at a meeting of foreign ministers from European Union member states. During the meeting, she announced that the EU expects progress on sanctions against people involved in the deportation of Ukrainian children.
According to a correspondent from Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Kallas made the statement while announcing a high-level meeting of the International Coalition for the Return of Ukrainian Children. The meeting will take place later that day in Brussels.
At the same time, the EU Foreign Affairs Council continues to discuss a separate sanctions package. It is focused specifically on the deportation of Ukrainian children. The package could include around twenty new sanctions listings. In addition, a European official who was not authorized to speak publicly confirmed that the EU is coordinating these measures with G7 countries. The bloc also expects the United Kingdom and Canada to adopt similar decisions.
Possible Solutions
Kallas also commented on the ceasefire that Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed on. According to her, Russia introduced the ceasefire only to safely hold the military parade. She said that “they were actually attacking civilians in Ukraine.” However, she stressed that Ukraine continued to respect the ceasefire.
In addition, Kallas emphasized that sanctions against people responsible for deportations are necessary. The reason is those people must understand that they will face responsibility for their actions. She also said that “this is awful, what is done to these children”.
Furthermore, the EU representative said the bloc already has several ideas on how to negotiate with Russia and push it to return the children. According to Kallas, the international community should use every possible form of solidarity. She especially highlighted the importance of support from countries that maintain close relations with Russia.
Kallas also compared the issue to prisoner exchanges.
“With the prisoners of war. You can exchange them, but because Ukraine has not deported any Russian children, you cannot really exchange children to children. So that is why it is much more difficult,” she said.
According to official Ukrainian data, Russia has deported or forcibly transferred more than 20,000 Ukrainian children since the beginning of the full-scale invasion. At the same time, an explainer by The Ukrainian Review states that around 1.6 million Ukrainian children currently remain under Russian control. Ukrainian authorities also reported that they managed to return 804 children home during the fourth year of the full-scale war.
Earlier, The Ukrainian Review reported that Russia launched a missile and drone attack against Ukraine on May 9. Russia has done it despite agreements on a three-day ceasefire for May 9–11.
