Nordic Ukraine Forum joins Swedish parliament meeting on abducted children

The Nordic Ukraine Forum took part in the high-level meeting “Abducted Ukrainian children: A Call for Collective Action” that was held on Nov. 24 in the Swedish Parliament as part of the Parliamentary Dimension of the Crimea Platform.

According to the organization, the Stockholm gathering assembled representatives from over 70 governments and international institutions.

One of the key speakers was Nathaniel Raymond, Executive Director of Yale University’s Humanitarian Research Lab, whose team has meticulously documented the network of Russian camps where abducted Ukrainian children are held and subjected to “re-education” and militarization.

This work is crucial for international investigations and mechanisms to repatriate the children, the nonprofit group Nordic Ukraine Forum said.

“It is therefore extremely alarming that, following a decision by the Trump administration to cut US funding for this work, the Yale lab is now at risk of shutting down as early as the end of December if new support is not secured,” the organization said.

The meeting was opened by Andreas Norlén, Speaker of the Swedish Parliament, and Ruslan Stefanchuk, Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine. A special guest at the event was Her Majesty Queen Silvia of Sweden, long engaged in the protection of children’s rights. Ambassadors, members of parliament, and representatives of academia and civil society filled the chamber.

Discussions focused on the scale of Russia’s systematic abduction of Ukrainian children and the tools the international community can use to locate, return, and hold perpetrators accountable. 

All official speakers pledged to continue raising the issue in their parliaments, governments, and international organizations.

Nordic Ukraine Forum said that the issue cannot dissipate after a single high-level day at the Crimea Platform, an international diplomatic initiative that started in Ukraine in 2021 to coordinate global efforts to keep Russia’s occupation of the peninsula high on the international agenda. .

“We will continue to raise the issue of abducted Ukrainian children in Sweden and across the Nordic region, support Ukrainian partners, and advocate for sustained funding and political backing for key research and accountability mechanisms,” the organization said.