The US Senate held a hearing on the Ukrainian children abducted by Russia

According to Ostap Yarysh, the Ukrainian Ambassador to the United States, Olga Stefanishyna, as well as representatives of organizations involved in rescuing Ukrainian children — Bring Kids Back, Save Ukraine, the Regional Human Rights Center, and the Yale Humanitarian Research Lab — testified.

In addition to the visitors and speakers, it was of great importance which influential senators would show up for the hearing. And in fact, many of them did. In particular, those who had previously voted against aid for Ukraine.

This is of great importance because it is an opportunity for senators to advance important bills and resolutions regarding abducted children.

But it is also an opportunity to move away from this topic and focus on supporting other initiatives regarding Ukraine — sanctions, security guarantees, arms supplies, and the use of frozen Russian assets. Especially against the backdrop of current negotiations between Washington, Kyiv, and Moscow.

Ostap Yarysh

Ukrainian journalist

This is clearly evident from the senators' comments:

• Lindsey Graham (R): “You can’t justly end a war without taking into account every child that Russia took from Ukraine. It’s also important that Congress review the peace deal proposals and have a say: Is this a good deal or a bad deal? There should be security guarantees in it — and Congress should evaluate them and try to find bipartisan support to keep those guarantees in place beyond the Trump administration.”

• Brian Schatz (D): "Any peace plan that allows Putin to avoid responsibility for the war, the illegal seizure of Ukrainian territory, the abduction of thousands of children, and the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people is unacceptable. It would set a dangerous precedent for the world and undermine future peace in the region."

• Katie Britt (R): “I hope this touches the hearts of every parent in America. Imagine your children being snatched from your arms and you not knowing where they are. Imagine them being forced, terrified, to give up everything they know and love. To allow this to happen is to go against the very essence of who we are as a country. It is our moral duty to continue the effort until we have returned every child to their parents’ arms.”

• Richard Blumenthal (D): “The abduction of children is more than a war crime. It is literally genocide. Because the ultimate goal of abducting these children is to destroy Ukrainian identity and destroy Ukraine. ... So we need to move forward with the sanctions bill, with the recognition of Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism, and also make efforts to use frozen Russian assets.”

Several important bills are currently registered in Congress: designating Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism for child abductions, tightening sanctions against Moscow, using frozen Russian assets, and others. Some of them have been awaiting approval for a long time.

Such hearings are an element of influence on the leaders of the Senate and the House of Representatives to bring these bills to a vote. And an opportunity for legislators to once again convey to the Trump administration their position on peace negotiations with Ukraine and Russia. And of course, this additionally attracts the attention of the media and American society. And judging by how many people came to the Senate today, this was achieved.

To learn more about Russia's abduction of Ukrainian children, watch the documentary "Damaged Childhood," created by Ukrainian independent media and video production company Online.UA: