Russia Indoctrinated, Abused Thousands of Ukrainian Children, Report Finds
A new report published on Sept. 11 by Save Ukraine and War Child U.K. has revealed the scale of abuse faced by Ukrainian children living under Russian occupation.
Based on the testimonies of 200 children who were returned from occupied territories and Russia, the study describes Moscow’s actions as the most systematic assault on children’s rights in Europe since the wars in the former Yugoslavia.
The findings are harrowing. More than half of the children reported being subjected to indoctrination, with some also describing torture and sexual violence.
Forty-one percent were forced into militarization through weapons training, drills, or enrollment in Russia’s state-backed youth groups. Others were separated from their families, denied medical care, or detained in police stations, filtration camps, and informal facilities.
One 16-year-old girl from Kherson Oblast recalled, “Every day felt like we were being shaped into something we weren’t. They didn’t treat us like kids. They wanted us to behave like their soldiers.”
Researchers concluded that Russia’s goal is to erase Ukrainian identity and condition children for eventual use in its armed forces, potentially forcing them to fight against their own country.
According to Ukraine’s Children of War database, at least 19,546 children have been abducted since the start of the full-scale invasion, though only 1,605 have been returned. Researchers at Yale University estimate the true number could be as high as 35,000.
In 2023, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Vladimir Putin and Russian Children’s Commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova over their role in these abductions.
Save Ukraine CEO Mykola Kuleba said the testimonies reflect a deliberate effort to erase children’s Ukrainian identities, while War Child U.K. CEO Helen Pattinson described the situation as “terrifying,” urging world leaders to take immediate and decisive action to ensure the safe return of all abducted children.
At the highest levels, the issue remains central to Ukraine’s negotiations with allies and with Moscow. President Volodymyr Zelensky has made clear that the return of abducted children is a non-negotiable condition in any potential peace deal.
