UK imposes sanctions on Russians for 'forced deportation' of Ukrainian children

The UK on Tuesday slapped sanctions against 10 people and entities behind Russia's "forcible deportation and attempted indoctrination of Ukrainian children", 1,000 days after Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

The curbs target "those who prop up this insidious programme", the foreign ministry said, and follow similar sanctions in 2022 and 2023 against individuals and bodies involved in the alleged forced deportations.

They include several Russian officials and the All-Russian Young Army Military Patriotic Social Movement, a paramilitary organisation that London said is "central" to the effort.

The sanctions are the latest imposed by Britain and Western allies in response to Russian President Vladimir Putin ordering troops into Ukraine in February 2022.

The measures have primarily targeted the Russian economy, aiming to reduce its ability to fund the war, but have also been aimed at those accused of rights abuses.

"As Ukraine reaches the grim milestone of 1,000 days of bravely defending against Putin's illegal invasion, the UK's support is iron-clad," Foreign Secretary David Lammy said in a statement.

"With our international partners, we stand with Ukraine to confront Russian aggression and fight for freedom, liberty and victory."

Britain claims more than 19,500 Ukrainian children have been forcibly transferred or deported by the Russian authorities to Russia and temporarily occupied territories in Ukraine.

An estimated 6,000 Ukrainian children have been relocated to a network of re-education camps, according to the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office.

Once there, they are subjected to indoctrination efforts which "seek to erode their Ukrainian identity and instil pro-Russian sentiments", it said.

The strategy dates back to Russia's illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014, the ministry added.

"No child should ever be used as a pawn in war, yet President Putin's targeting of Ukrainian children shows the depths he will go to in his mission to erase Ukraine and its people from the map," said Lammy.

Among those sanctioned by Britain on Tuesday was Tetiana Zavalska, the Russian-appointed head of Kherson Children's Home, from where London said 46 children were forcibly removed to Russia for adoption.

Vitaliy Aleksandrovich Suk, director of the Oleshki Boarding School for Children with disabilities in Kherson, was also targeted "for using his position to illegally transfer disabled Ukrainian children out of Kherson".

All those sanctioned face UK travel bans and freezes on any assets in Britain.