LONDON: Britain on Wednesday imposed sanctions on 11 more individuals and entities affiliated with the Russian state, targeting those involved in what it said were Moscow’s attempts to forcibly deport and indoctrinate Ukraine’s children.
Ukraine says that more than 19,500 children have been taken to Russia or Russian-occupied territory during the war without the consent of family or guardians, calling the abductions a war crime that meets the UN treaty definition of genocide. Moscow has said it was protecting vulnerable children from a war zone.
“The Kremlin’s policy of forced deportations, indoctrination and militarization of Ukrainian children is despicable,” foreign minister David Lammy said in a statement, setting out Britain’s latest round of sanctions against Russia for the war in Ukraine.
Organizations such as the Akhmat Kadyrov Foundation which runs re-education programs for Ukrainian children and teenagers, subjecting them to militaristic training, and its president, Aymani Nesievna Kadyrova, are among those targeted, the statement said. The sanctions include asset freezes, travel bans and other penalties.
The Russian embassy in London said the sanctions were unlawful and based on “unfounded claims” from Ukraine about the forcible transfer of children.
