Russia has taken 700,000 Ukrainian children into custody in a program to protect orphans and those abandoned during the fighting, a Russian lawmaker has said.
The number reported is more than 35 times higher than Ukrainian estimates of the number of children forcibly removed from their homes and taken to Russia.
In a post on Telegram, Russian lawmaker Grigory Karasin claimed that the children “sought refuge” in Russia.
“Many with their parents and children from orphanages with their teachers,” said Karasin.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the total number of children deported to Russia is at least 19,505.
Kiev said thousands of cases were already under investigation.
A report released in February detailed allegations of an extensive network of dozens of camps in Russia where children have undergone “political re-education”, including academic, cultural and, in some cases, military education centered in Russia.
Russia has denied it is doing anything illegal, claiming it is bringing Ukrainian children to safety.
Source: CNN Brasil
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