Abstract/Summary

Since the International Criminal Court’s arrest warrants for Vladimir Putin and Maria Lvova-Belova for war crimes in March 2023, the deportation and unlawful transfer of children from occupied areas of Ukraine to the Russian Federation has been the subject of international legal, media and institutional attention. Exact numbers are difficult to come by. At the time of writing Children of War reports that 19,546 children have been deported. Reports suggest that many deported children may have been given Russian citizenship and illegally adopted. Others have been placed in re-education camps. In January 2024, concerns were again raised about the fate of deported children when President Putin signed a decree which further expedites the process for the granting of Russian citizenship. Under the decree orphans and children without parental care who are citizens of Ukraine can acquire Russian citizenship by personal decision of the President of the Russian Federation. Russia has consistently denied deportation of Ukrainian children and has dismissed ICC arrest warrants on the grounds that, as a non-States Party, it does not recognise the Court. To date, there have been few opportunities to hold Russia to account. However, on 22 and 23 January, a delegation from the Russian Federation appeared before the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child as part of the periodic reporting process required under the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). Ahead of the sessions, there was considerable interest in how Russia might respond to questions from the Committee on the deportation of children from Ukraine. This post considers the proceedings before the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child and Russia’s justifications for the transfer of children from Ukraine. It will show that Russia’s explanations do little to assuage concerns about the transfer and treatment of children from Ukraine. Indeed, there should be grave concern that Russia continues to fall foul of international humanitarian law (IHL) and CRC standards.