Ukraine calls on international community to step up efforts to bring Ukrainian children, civilians and prisoners of war home

Canada, Ukraine and Norway are co-hosting the Second International Conference on the Return of Ukrainian Children, Detained Civilians and Prisoners of War – Pathways to Peace. On 28–29 September, representatives of states and international organisations gathered in Toronto to assess progress since the first conference, held in Montreal in 2024, and agree on joint steps to bring Ukrainians home. The conference focuses on humanitarian access, information sharing, and the rehabilitation and reintegration of people after their return.

Minister of Social Policy, Family and Unity of Ukraine Denys Uliutin called on participants to turn international commitments into concrete action that can help bring Ukrainians home. “Two years ago in Montreal, more than 70 countries agreed that the human dimension of this war cannot wait for the war to end. Countries made concrete commitments – and people came home because of them,” the Minister said.

At the same time, the number of Ukrainians registered as missing has increased from around 42,000 two years ago to more than 114,000 today.

Ukrainian children

As of September 2026, the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine has officially confirmed 20,651 cases of the deportation and forced transfer of Ukrainian children. These figures are not final – the work continues every day, and each case requires individual verification to establish the circumstances and status of the child. Russia has not provided official statistics on the number of Ukrainian children it has deported or forcibly transferred. It has also blocked independent monitoring and failed to respond to requests from international organisations. As of 28 September 2026, 2,650 children have been returned from Russia and temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine through the President of Ukraine’s Bring Kids Back UA initiative.

Maxym Maksymov, Head of the Bring Kids Back UA initiative, said: “On the first day of the conference, 83 delegations heard the personal testimonies of victims of russia’s crimes – how russia takes away children’s language and history and prepares them for war against their own country, how it tortures prisoners of war and holds civilians in detention for years without any grounds. This is a system, and the response must also be systemic. The outcome of this conference must therefore be concrete steps and commitments that bring our people home – children, civilians and prisoners of war.”

Unlawfully detained civilians

Ukraine has established the unlawful detention of 1,926 civilians, while the fate of another 12,887 people remains unknown. Among those Ukraine has asked to be prioritised for release are 245 people aged 60 and over, 176 women, 276 people detained before the full-scale invasion, and three OSCE representatives. The relevant lists were provided to the russian side and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in January this year. Russia has not responded.

Prisoners of war

The protection of prisoners of war is a requirement of international humanitarian law. Ukrainian authorities are aware of more than 300 places of detention holding Ukrainians in russia, belarus and temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine. The ICRC does not have access to these facilities. More than 95% of Ukrainian prisoners of war interviewed by UN human rights monitors reported torture.

“Ukraine is not asking for sympathy. We are asking for three things: access, information and return,” Denys Uliutin stressed. According to the Minister, the international community must ensure that existing commitments are translated into concrete mechanisms that can establish people’s whereabouts, secure access to places of detention and make their return possible. “Every decision at this conference must have a concrete result — another person coming home. And it is important that we listen to those who have returned, as well as the families who are still waiting, not only as witnesses to what has happened. They give us the most reliable understanding of what is happening today,” Denys Uliutin said.