MOSCOW, June 25. /TASS/. Accusations of Russia’s forceful abduction of minors from Donbass, contained in the Verkhovna Rada’s address to the UN, are a cynical lie, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Saturday.
"We noted the address of the Verkhovna Rada to the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC), UN International Court, UN High Commissioner for Refugees about the alleged ‘abduction and forced deportation of Ukrainian children’ to the Russian territory, published on June 19. The false claims contained there have been repeatedly voiced before during the informational campaign on accusing our country of forced transportation of minors from Donbass, deployed in Ukraine and in international organizations," Zakharova said in her commentary, published on the Foreign Ministry website.
The diplomat noted that such claims are cynical, because, "during the eight years of armed conflict, over 150 children died in this region, and many times more were injured."
"As of June 23, 2022, over 2 million people, almost 325,000 of them minors, have been evacuated from dangerous regions of Ukraine and Donbass republics to the Russian Federation. All these people travelled to our country voluntarily, saving their lives and lives of their children," Zakharova noted.
The spokeswoman underscored that Russian institutions continue their active work on provision of addressed humanitarian and medical aid to children, including psychological rehabilitation and search for relatives.
"The Convention on the Rights of the Child cements children’s right for life, survival and development, as well as right for water, food, shelter, healthcare, education and protection from all forms of violence. Children are entitled to special care and help. Russia helps children of Donbass to implement these rights," she added.