Ukraine’s human rights ombudsman has accused Russia of transferring some of the thousands of Ukrainian children taken from occupied regions to North Korea for what he described as “re-education.”
Dmytro Lubinets made the statement on Thursday, although he did not specify how many children had been relocated to the isolated Asian state, a country known for its strict regime and tightening ties with Moscow. Russia has not yet issued a public response to the claim.
According to testimony from a Kyiv-based human rights group, which Lubinets referenced, there are as many as 165 facilities where Ukrainian children are reportedly being re-educated. These locations are said to be spread across occupied Ukrainian territory, Belarus, Russia, and now North Korea.
A representative of the Regional Center for Human Rights (RCHR), speaking before the US Senate on Wednesday, revealed that some children were allegedly sent to Songdowon summer camp on North Korea’s east coast.
Reports say they were instructed in anti-Japanese ideological training and even met veterans who once captured a US spy ship in 1968.
Ukraine maintains that nearly 20,000 children have been abducted or forcibly removed since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in 2022. Moscow has admitted to relocating some minors but insists it was done for humanitarian reasons and that efforts are being made to reunite them with families, a claim Kyiv firmly disputes.
In 2023, the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin and his children’s rights commissioner over allegations surrounding the forced transfer and deportation of Ukrainian minors to Russian-controlled areas.
