The European Parliament has called on Russia to return Ukrainian children who have been deported or forcibly transferred during the war, saying their return must not be made conditional on political concessions.
MEPs adopted the resolution on 12 November by 536 votes to eight, with 37 abstentions. They demanded that the children be returned safely and unconditionally to Ukrainian-controlled territory and called for those responsible for their transfer to be held to account.
The resolution condemns what Parliament describes as Russia’s systematic deportation and forcible transfer of children, as well as unlawful adoption, forced Russification, indoctrination and militarisation. It calls for these practices to stop and says Russia is responsible for respecting the rights of children under its control.
The vote follows a debate on 11 November. It is a non-legislative resolution: it expresses Parliament’s position and makes demands of Russia and calls on other authorities, but it does not itself order the return of children or impose new sanctions.
Different figures, different groups
The resolution cites Ukrainian authorities’ figure of 20,651 verified cases of deportation and forcible transfer of children as of September 2026. It also says approximately 1.6 million Ukrainian children are estimated to be living under Russian occupation.
Those figures describe different groups. The estimate of children living in occupied territory is not a count of children verified as deported or forcibly transferred. Parliament’s resolution also says the actual number of children transferred is not known.
A separate figure in the resolution records that 2,752 Ukrainian children had been returned by 28 October 2026. That total includes children who were deported, forcibly transported or rescued from Russian-occupied territory, so it should not be treated as a direct subtraction from the verified deportation figure.
Tracing and reunification
MEPs called on EU member states to work more closely with Ukraine, international partners and organisations to identify, document, trace and return missing and deported children. They also backed cooperation involving Europol, Eurojust and the Ukrainian ombudsman to gather information and locate children.
Ukraine’s deputy parliamentary speaker, Olena Kondratiuk, said the resolution also addresses children who remain in occupied territory. She said it calls for access to Ukrainian-language education and for children and their families to be able to leave safely and voluntarily for territory controlled by Ukraine.
She said MEPs want information about children’s whereabouts, health and legal status to be made available and international organisations to be given access. The resolution also calls for continuing support after children return, including psychological, medical, educational and legal help, and assistance with identity documents and family-based care.
The International Coalition for the Return of Ukrainian Children brings together countries and organisations working on tracing, returns and reintegration. At a meeting in May, its participants discussed improving verification, organising returns and helping children after their return. The EU announced nearly €50 million at that meeting to strengthen Ukraine’s child protection system.
Accountability and peace talks
MEPs said the return of children should be a central priority in diplomatic efforts towards a peace agreement. They argued that it must not be used as a bargaining instrument or made dependent on territorial concessions, prisoner exchanges or other political arrangements.
Parliament also called for existing EU sanctions to be expanded against officials and entities identified as responsible for child deportations. The call is a proposal for further action, not an announcement that additional sanctions have already been adopted.
The resolution reiterates support for the International Criminal Court and its arrest warrants for Russian President Vladimir Putin and Russia’s children’s rights commissioner, Maria Lvova-Belova. The court issued the warrants in March 2023 over the alleged war crimes of unlawful deportation and transfer of children from occupied areas of Ukraine to Russia. The warrants are not convictions.
Separately, a United Nations commission of inquiry concluded in March 2026 that Russian authorities’ deportation and transfer of Ukrainian children amounted to crimes against humanity as well as war crimes. Russia has denied taking children against their will and has said it evacuated people voluntarily from a war zone.
MEPs also declared that Russia’s actions towards Ukrainian children meet the legal definition of genocide and called on EU member states to recognise them as such. That is Parliament’s position, not a court verdict. Under the genocide convention, the forcible transfer of children is one of the specified acts when committed with the intent to destroy a protected group in whole or in part.
Parliament had already called for the return of Ukrainian children in a resolution in May 2025. The latest vote renews those demands and addresses the situation of children living under occupation alongside the tracing, return and care of those who have been transferred.
