Ukraine: Forcible Removal of Children
Debate between Baroness Tyler of Enfield and Baroness Chapman of Darlington
The Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Baroness Chapman of Darlington) (Lab)
My Lords, as noble Lords will know, talks are continuing today, and it is not the Government’s intention to provide any kind of running commentary on this, and I know that that noble Lords would not want us to do that. In answer to the noble Lord’s question, he can be assured that the UK and our partners and allies in the European Union are taking part and doing everything we can to bring about the lasting and just peace that we all wish to see.
Baroness Tyler of Enfield (LD)
My Lords, I welcome the fact that the UK Government have been closely working with the Bring Back Kids organisation and providing much needed assistance. Looking at the additional support that is very much needed, parliamentarians who have visited Kyiv recently have pointed to the need for greater collaboration between intelligence services on the tracing of those stolen children and financial assistance to support the interrogation of the data. Both those things could make a real difference. What consideration are the Government giving to these proposals?
Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)
Speaking personally and for the Government, I think that the removal of 20,000 Ukrainian children is one of the most horrific elements of this whole awful war. We are doing everything we can to work with our partners and allies, even as far as working with celebrities or anybody who can bring attention to this and put pressure to see these children returned home to where they ought to be. Several hundred have returned, and we are helping to support them with the psychosocial support that they very much need. We know that these children are held in around 400 different locations. This is complex and difficult, but it is incredibly important, and our focus will remain—as the noble Baroness would want it to be—on seeing these children returned home.
Abducted Ukrainian Children
Debate between Baroness Tyler of Enfield and Baroness Chapman of Darlington
Baroness Tyler of Enfield
To ask His Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to support the safe return of abducted Ukrainian children forcibly removed to Russia and Belarus.
The Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Baroness Chapman of Darlington) (Lab)
My Lords, the UK continually raises the issue in multilateral fora, alongside our allies, and is an active member of the International Coalition for the Return of Ukrainian Children. We contribute to the Partnership Fund for a Resilient Ukraine, a multi-donor initiative through which we support the Government of Ukraine to facilitate the return and reintegration of children. Through PFRU, we have supported the NGO Save Ukraine and the Ukrainian Government’s Bring Kids Back initiative.
Baroness Tyler of Enfield (LD)
My Lords, I thank the Minister. While figures vary, Save the Children has estimated that over 20,000 Ukrainian children have been forcibly transferred to Russia or Russian occupied territories, separated from their families and subjected to systematic efforts to erase their identity, including re-education camps, forced adoptions and conscription. The sheer number and ferocity of other international conflicts has resulted in relatively little attention being given to these abhorrent violations of international law, so what urgent steps are the Government considering to ramp up their economic sanctions and travel bans on those involved—to date, they have applied sanctions to 19 individuals and three entities—and to ensure that those responsible for these war crimes are brought to justice?
Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)
I am very pleased that this Question was selected, because the noble Baroness is right to remind the House what has been happening. It is a dreadful thing for any family to find that their child has been removed from their country, and to not know where they are, how they are and how they can be returned. As she said, we have been using our sanctions regime to hold those responsible to account and to try to encourage the return of the children. As she also said, we are talking about estimated numbers, but only around 900 have been returned so far out of 20,000. We do not have a huge amount of confidence even in those numbers, which are the Ukrainian Government’s, so there is clearly a lot more that needs to be done.
The noble Baroness knows that we do not comment on future sanctions designations, but we will continue to use every tool at our disposal to locate these children and to support those who are negotiating their return.