Russia tries to hide its crimes against children in Ukraine – UK intelligence

The authorities of the Russian Federation are trying to justify the actions of Russian President Vladimir Putin regarding the deportation of children from Ukraine by creating a commission to investigate "alleged crimes committed by the Ukrainian government" against minors since 2014.

The British Ministry of Defense stated this in the intelligence review published on Twitter, Rubryka reports.

The agency reports that on June 20, the State Duma of the Russian Federation voted to create a parliamentary commission to investigate "alleged crimes committed by the Ukrainian government against juveniles in the Donbas since 2014."

According to intelligence, this is how the Russian parliament reacts to the international community's condemnation of Russia's deportation of children from the occupied territories of Ukraine.

"The move is highly likely both a form of 'lawfare' and contributes to Russian information operations, weaponizing legislation by attempting to muddy the narrative around its own egregious actions," the report said.

The children's rights message is likely to be an important communication topic for the Kremlin, as child deportations formed the basis of an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court for Putin in March 2023, the intelligence added.

On March 17, the International Criminal Court in The Hague issued arrest warrants for Russian President Putin and Russian children's advisor Lvova-Belova. They are accused of illegally deporting children from Ukraine to the Russian Fedeperiod from February 24, 2022. The warrant issuance means that Putin could be arrested if he goes to any member country of the International Criminal Court.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Putin "deserves to be convicted" and sent to The Hague.

Background 

As Rubryka reported, as of June 20, 19,499 children had already been abducted by Russia and the so-called republics, of which only 373 minors were returned home.

We remind you that "Children of War" is a platform where you can report and find all the information about children who suffered from the Russian Federation's war against Ukraine.

The Prosecutor General's Office reported that information on a war crime against a child could be provided through a single evidence hub: warcrimes.gov.ua and by phone: +380961004438, +380683235856.

On April 27, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe adopted a resolution recognizing the forced transfer of Ukrainian children to Russia as genocide.