On 3 December, South Africa will face an important decision at the United Nations General Assembly. The Assembly will be voting on a resolution calling for the immediate, safe and unconditional return of Ukrainian children who have been forcibly transferred or deported by Russia since 2014. South Africa supported only one resolution on Russian aggression, which was the February 2025 vote on Ukraine’s territorial integrity. When the matter at hand concerns the rights and protection of children, the country must consider whether an abstention is morally defensible.
A strong vote in favour will send a message that children are never acceptable tools of war. It will also signal to those who abduct children in conflicts in Nigeria, Sudan and other parts of the world that the international community recognises the rights of children and the importance of keeping families together.
South Africa has previously acknowledged the urgency of the issue. During the African Peace Mission to Ukraine and Russia in June 2023, President Cyril Ramaphosa urged President Vladimir Putin to return all Ukrainian children. In November 2024, South Africa confirmed its willingness to help mediate their return. When President Volodymyr Zelensky visited South Africa on 24 April 2025, President Ramaphosa received a list of 400 children who had been forcibly removed. Very little progress has been made since then.
More than 19,546 Ukrainian children have been formally recorded as unlawfully deported. The true number may be several times higher, potentially over 200,000. Only 1,859 children have been returned. Many have been sent to 57 different regions of Russia, with some adopted into Russian families without any mechanism to restore their identities or reunite them with their families.
These removals began in 2014 but increased sharply after the full-scale invasion in 2022. A decree signed by President Putin in May 2022 allowed Russian authorities to change children’s names, dates of birth and other personal data and to grant citizenship without the consent of parents or caregivers. This made it possible to move large numbers of Ukrainian children into Russian households.
The International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for President Putin and Russia’s Commissioner for Children’s Rights, Maria Lvova-Belova, based on allegations of the unlawful transfer of children. Only after the ICC’s intervention did President Putin sign an order that he said would enable family reunification during what Russia calls the “special military operation”.
Children who remain in Russia face constant pressure to abandon their Ukrainian identity. Maria Lvova-Belova has publicly described her attempts to “re-educate” a teenager from Mariupol, explaining how his attitude shifted after being placed in Russia.
Some children have returned home through diplomatic efforts. One notable case is that of 17-year-old Bohdan Yermokhin. He attempted to flee Russia twice but was detained at the Belarus–Russia border and later issued draft papers to report for military service when he turned 18. Bohdan eventually returned to Ukraine after sustained intervention by Qatar, UNICEF and widespread media attention. In November 2025, his Russian foster guardian, Irina Rudnitskaya, was accused of child trafficking.
Despite international criticism, Russia continues to transfer and “re-educate” Ukrainian children. Programmes such as Warrior, Russian Forces, The Day After Tomorrow and Map 85+4 are described publicly as recreational, yet they operate under state supervision and in some cases with direct presidential involvement.
The proposed UN Resolution aims to support the return of Ukrainian children by enabling the UN Secretary-General to use diplomatic channels to assist in the process. The resolution requires Russia to share the names and details of all affected children and to ensure their safe and immediate repatriation. It also calls for an end to forced transfers, deportations, changes to children’s personal status and all forms of indoctrination.
South African civil society has already expressed strong support. Thirteen human rights NGOs made a public call in June 2024 for the return of Ukrainian children. South African artists, including The Soil, also partnered with the Ukrainian band Yahody to raise awareness through a concert at Nirox.
The forced transfer and indoctrination of Ukrainian children violate the Fourth Geneva Convention and meet the criteria for genocide under Article 6(e) of the Rome Statute. It is critical that the practice of separating Ukrainian children from their parents and indoctrination stops. Children must be reunited with their families.
The proposed UN Resolution aligns with African principles of child protection, which emphasise preventing the militarisation of children and strengthening family and community structures. Supporting the return of Ukrainian children is consistent with South Africa’s constitutional values and its long-standing commitment to human rights.
The first international treaty ratified by democratic South Africa was the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child on 16 June 1995. On Wednesday, 3 December, South Africa has an opportunity to uphold these principles and use its influence to help end this crime.
Prof Elvis Fokala, Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria
Dr Kateryna Rashevska is a legal expert at the Regional Center for Human Rights
Dzvinka Kachur is a co-founder of the NPO Ukrainian Association of South Africa