A coalition of faith groups, including the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, has urged Russia to return nearly 20,000 Ukrainian children taken since the onset of its invasion of Ukraine.
The initiative was led by Myal Greene, president of World Relief, an evangelical humanitarian organization associated with the National Association of Evangelicals.
The letter was signed by several prominent figures, including NAE President Walter Kim, Institute on Religion and Democracy President Mark Tooley, former Obama-era Ambassador Susan Jacobs, Sharon Willis of Our Daily Bread Ministries, Travis Weber of the Family Research Council, Daniel Darling of the Land Center for Cultural Engagement at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, and Rev. Rona Tyndall of the United Church of Christ.
In a letter sent to President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio last week, the coalition addressed reports that Russian forces had abducted these children since they invaded the Eastern European nation in 2022.
The letter emphasizes, “These children, ranging in age from four months to 17 years old, have been subjected to political re-education, military training, and forced assimilation into Russian society.” It further states, “Many have been placed in Russian families, illegally adopted, and had their birth certificates altered to erase their Ukrainian identities. The Russian government has denied Ukrainian children access to their families, subjected them to physical abuse, and failed to provide them with adequate food and care.”
The groups implored the Trump administration to prioritize the return of these children in ongoing peace negotiations between Ukraine and Russia, stating, “No peace deal should be finalized until Ukraine’s children are returned home.” They added, “We urge you, as leaders of the free world, to ensure that Ukraine’s children are returned home without precondition in advance of peace talks.”
Brent Leatherwood, president of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, conveyed to Baptist Press that “Christians are compelled to speak out on behalf of the vulnerable, here and abroad, and that includes calling out the grave injustice facing Ukraine’s children.”
He added, “The forced deportation and abuse of over 19,000 children is evil and a violation of their inherent dignity and rights. We must not allow these children to be used as pawns in geopolitical negotiations.”
On February 24, 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine, justifying the action by claiming to support a pro-Russian independence movement in the eastern part of the country. Last month, Trump reported having secured a 30-day ceasefire, limited to not attacking energy infrastructure, indicating that he had a “very good” phone call with his Ukrainian counterpart.
