South Africa, Vatican, Qatar to mediate return of Ukrainian children from Russia

South Africa and the Vatican joined Qatar at a conference in Montreal on Thursday in offering to mediate and facilitate the return of about 20,000 Ukrainian children from Russia.

The “Ministerial Conference on the Human Dimension of Ukraine’s Peace Formula” brought together representatives from 70 countries.

“Children, civilians and prisoners of war must be allowed to return home,” Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly said in announcing an agreement by delegates on steps to “bring these people back home.”

Qatar, South Africa and the Vatican, she said, would serve as intermediaries to support and negotiate the return of the children. Lithuania and Qatar would act as transit countries.

The United Arab Emirates also offered to help mediate exchanges of Russian and Ukrainian prisoners of war.

Ukraine Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said he was “happy that we settled (on) the network of partners to speed up this process” of repatriations.

“I am happy to go back to Kyiv with concrete results which many Ukrainian families are waiting for,” he said.

“In times when we see that international humanitarian law, unfortunately, does not provide protection, full protection, such joint efforts and leadership at this conference demonstrates that we could achieve results.”

Since July 2023, Qatar has secured the return of dozens of Ukrainian children that had been moved to Russia and occupied territories since the start of its invasion in February 2022.

Kyiv has demanded the return of nearly 20,000 minors from Russia — a figure that many observers consider to be underestimated.

The International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant in March 2023 for Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Commissioner for Children’s Rights, Maria Lvova-Belova, for the war crime of “illegal deportations.”

These accusations have been repeatedly rejected by Russian authorities, who claim to have been protecting children from the fighting and say they are ready to return the children to their relatives in Ukraine if they request it.

According to Kyiv, 860 children have been repatriated so far.