How Dr. Kateryna Rashevska Interprets the UN Findings on Ukrainian Children
Author(s): Scott Douglas Jacobsen
Publication (Outlet/Website): The Good Men Project
Publication Date (yyyy/mm/dd): 2026/04/21
Dr. Kateryna Rashevska is a Ukrainian human rights lawyer and PhD fellow in international law, specializing in accountability for war crimes against children. She is a Legal Expert and Lead on International Justice and Legal Analysis at the Regional Center for Human Rights. Rashevska is also a member of the Interdepartmental Commission on the Application and Implementation of International Humanitarian Law in Ukraine, the Expert Council at the Representation of the President of Ukraine in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, and the Bring Kids Back UA Task Force. She has addressed the UN Security Council and spoken publicly in international forums on child deportation cases.
Scott Douglas Jacobsen interviews Kateryna Rashevska on the UN Commission of Inquiry’s findings on Russia’s deportation and forcible transfer of Ukrainian children. Rashevska explains that the Commission verified the deportation or transfer of 1,205 children from five oblasts and concluded that these acts amounted to crimes against humanity and war crimes of deportation and forcible transfer of children; the Commission also found enforced disappearance and unjustifiable delay in repatriation. She argues that delayed repatriation, Russification, militarization, ideological indoctrination, and long-term placement in Russian families or institutions form part of a broader system aimed at erasing Ukrainian identity. The discussion also examines accountability pathways through the ICC, sanctions, UN mechanisms, and broader international justice processes for protecting children and documenting continuing abuses under occupation today.
Scott Douglas Jacobsen: Given the resource constraints facing the United Nations, which areas related to children remain underinvestigated?
Kateryna Rashevska: This is an important question. Much attention is rightly focused on children who have been deported or forcibly transferred, as there is an urgent need to secure their return to their families.
There is also growing attention to children living under Russian control in occupied territories who are subjected to militarization and political indoctrination. This is increasingly understood not only as a threat to Ukraine’s national security but as a broader regional security concern. The long-term implications of raising children within such systems remain uncertain.
However, several areas remain insufficiently examined. One is the intersectional impact of these policies. For example, there is limited research on the long-term physical and mental health consequences of militarization and indoctrination. There is also a need to assess the effects on social cohesion in Ukrainian-controlled territories following the return of these children.
Another underexplored issue is the demographic impact of Russian policies in occupied territories, including the forced alteration of population structures and its implications for prolonged occupation and future reintegration into Ukraine.
Additionally, the broader displacement of Ukrainian children and families abroad raises questions about long-term development, including economic and societal consequences, as well as implications for Ukraine’s future security.
Ukraine does not need only a labour force. It needs citizens who can defend the country and contribute to its reconstruction after Russian aggression, and who are prepared to face ongoing risks. It is unrealistic to assume that the threat from the Russian Federation will disappear. Future generations may face similar or greater risks, particularly if the international response does not change or if Russia does not undergo a transformation comparable to that of the Soviet Union.
These intersectional dimensions remain insufficiently addressed, as do certain categories of crimes committed against Ukrainian children under Russian control. For example, teenagers have been unlawfully detained and prosecuted on charges related to alleged disloyalty, including accusations of extremism or terrorism.
In cases where children have been forcibly assigned Russian citizenship, they may later be treated by Russian authorities as traitors. Some are transferred between occupied territories or deported to the Russian Federation to stand trial. There are documented cases of individuals, initially detained as minors, being sentenced as young adults to terms of seven or nine years in Russian penal institutions following convictions by Russian courts.
These individuals cannot be returned through prisoner-of-war exchanges, as they are civilians rather than combatants. Nor do they fall within existing return initiatives for abducted children. As a result, they remain in detention in the Russian Federation, effectively as civilian detainees, without clear mechanisms for return. Reports indicate that they may be subjected to torture, inhuman treatment, and other forms of abuse.
Additional concerns include sexual violence and other forms of ill-treatment in occupied territories. Such crimes are often underreported. Ukrainian children in these areas lack effective remedies or protection under the occupation authorities, despite the obligations of those authorities under international law.
Another underexamined issue is the risk of human trafficking. Armed conflict creates conditions in which trafficking can occur more easily. Ukrainian children are at heightened risk of exploitation, including in cases where they are transferred within or beyond the Russian Federation under various pretexts.
Several factors hinder monitoring and prevention. Russian domestic mechanisms to address trafficking are limited, and cooperation with European partners is absent. In addition, the issue has not received sufficient international attention.
In 2024, the United States placed Russia and Belarus in Tier 3 in its Trafficking in Persons reporting framework. Given that Ukrainian children have been transferred to both countries, including to so-called re-education facilities, this issue requires further investigation.
Greater attention to these patterns is necessary. Children are among the most vulnerable victims of this war, and both Ukraine and the international community bear responsibilities to ensure their protection and to address these violations comprehensively.
The international community has an obligation not only to respond to international crimes that have already been committed, but also to prevent their Commission. This requires proactive measures.
In 2024, United Nations experts invoked the term scholasticide to describe the systematic destruction of education systems in conflict settings. Although not developed specifically in the context of Ukraine, this framework is relevant for analyzing how the Russian Federation is using education in occupied territories.
Russian actions targeting education are both physical and ideological. There have been attacks on educational infrastructure, as well as efforts to reshape curricula and learning environments. These actions do not appear solely driven by military necessity but also aim to deprive Ukrainian children of opportunities for independent development.
In occupied territories and within the Russian Federation, education is used to advance state objectives rather than to support the child’s development. This includes promoting narratives aligned with Russian state interests, including justifying the war.
The concept of scholasticide provides a framework for examining the broader misuse of education systems. It expands analysis beyond militarization to include structural and ideological transformation. In this context, education policy may contribute to efforts to suppress Ukrainian identity and undermine Ukraine’s existence as a sovereign state.
Jacobsen: Thank you very much for the opportunity and your time, Kateryna.
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