US may ask Russia to return Ukrainian children as confidence-building measure, says US National Security Adviser
www.pravda.com.ua
Sun, 23 Mar 2025 20:23:47 +0200
US National Security Adviser Mike Waltz believes the United States may ask Russia to release illegally deported Ukrainian children as part of confidencebuilding measures.
Source Waltz in an interview with CBS News on Sunday 23 March Details The host asked why the State Department had stopped funding a Yale University programme that helped locate Ukrainian children abducted by Russia.
Waltz replied that Secretary Rubio is conducting a review of all of those programmes and that he could not comment on that particular one.
Quote But I can say that President Trump has spoken to both leaders about prisoner exchanges.
Both the Russians and Ukrainians exchanged prisoners, nearly 200, immediately following their call.
And hes also talked about the future of these children.
So thats certainly, first and foremost, and, kind of, confidencebuilding measures. More details When asked to clarify whether the US was requesting the return of Ukrainian children as a confidencebuilding measure, Waltz said Were talking through a number of confidencebuilding measures.
Thats one of them.
Background Elon Musks largescale cuts to funding in the US government have suspended the work of a Yale University team that helped rescue hundreds of Ukrainian children abducted by Russia.
A group of Democratic lawmakers said there was reason to believe that evidence of Russias abduction of around 30,000 children from Ukraine had been lost after US funding was withdrawn.
In response, a State Department spokesperson stated that the information gathered under the Yale University project on Russias abduction of children from occupied Ukrainian territories had not been deleted despite the end of funding.
In March 2023, PreTrial Chamber II of the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Russian leader Vladimir Putin and Maria LvovaBelova, Russias Presidential Commissioner for Childrens Rights, who is also accused of war crimes related to the unlawful deportation and transfer of Ukrainian children.
In December 2024, during Joe Bidens presidency, the US State Department announced visa sanctions against five individuals involved in the forced deportation, relocation and imprisonment of Ukrainian children.
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