Russia is not alone in forcibly transferring Ukrainian children to its territory. Less well known is the fact that Belarus, Moscow's number-one ally in the war in Ukraine, also engages in this illegal practice, which could constitute a war crime.

More than 2,150 Ukrainians aged between 6 and 15 living in Russian-occupied areas have been deported to Belarus since the Russian invasion in February 2022, according to official Belarusian documents and statements, consulted by Le Monde, and leaks compiled by Belarusian opposition politician Pavel Latushko. This former member of the regime, who heads the Polish-based opposition group National Anti-Crisis Management, submitted evidence of Belarusian involvement to the International Criminal Court (ICC) on June 27.

In March, the ICC issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin and Russian Commissioner for Children's Rights Maria Lvova-Belova, for organizing the illegal transfer of Ukrainian children to Russia. Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko too could eventually be the subject of an arrest warrant.

On September 13, the European Parliament adopted a resolution condemning "the illegal transfer of more than 2,150 children, including orphans, from Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine to so-called recreation camps in Belarus, where they are subjected to Russification and indoctrination". The European Parliament said that "Alexander Lukashenko is as responsible for these war crimes as Vladimir Putin and Maria Lvova-Belova," and called on the ICC to "issue a similar international arrest warrant for" the Belarusian leader.

The Minsk regime makes no secret of these forced transfers. On the contrary, it claims that they are "humanitarian" operations designed to offer respite to war-torn children. In August, Lukashenko publicly acknowledged his direct involvement, in close collaboration with Russia. "We agreed with Vladimir Putin that we would finance these trips from the state budget of the Union [a treaty linking Russia and Belarus]," he said. "We have done so and will continue to do so without worrying about any reproach."

Belarus, which has served as a rear base for Russian troops since the invasion of Ukraine, boasted that it had brought in "over a thousand children" in the spring. On Tuesday, September 19, a group of 48 Ukrainian children arrived from the occupied regions of Donetsk, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia. Images broadcast by the official press show them thanking the authorities, red and green Belarusian flags in hand, flanked by riot police.

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