The OSCE expert mission under the Moscow Mechanism recorded for the first time at the international level that the militarization and indoctrination of Ukrainian children by Russia is a systemic state policy that can be regarded as a crime against humanity.
This is stated in the organizationʼs report, which was prepared by three independent experts from France, Latvia, and the United Kingdom.
In particular, the report confirms that Russia is forcibly integrating Ukrainian children in the occupied territories into its education system, displacing the Ukrainian language, and imposing propaganda.
Children are being recruited into paramilitary training and support for the war against Ukraine — training in weapons, drone operations, tactical medicine, and training for service in Russian military structures. Participation in this system is ensured through pressure on children, parents, and teachers, including threats and restrictions on access to education and social services.
According to experts, these are not isolated cases, but a state-built system. It covers more than 20 610 Ukrainian children who, according to Ukraine, were deported to Russia, as well as an unknown but significant number of children who remain in the temporarily occupied territories.
According to the report, the system begins with childrenʼs propaganda from the age of 6, continues with military training in schools from the age of 13, and can end with the conscription of boys into the Russian army after they reach the age of 18.
The mission concluded that the actions of the Russian Federation may constitute multiple violations of international humanitarian law and international human rights law. The mission separately documented possible war crimes of torture and inhuman treatment.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha noted that militarization, indoctrination, forced assimilation, and deportation are subordinate to a single goal — to destroy the identity of an entire generation of Ukrainians.
"This is a crime against humanity. The fate of Ukrainian children must be an integral part of any peace talks, and everyone involved in these crimes must be held accountable," the minister added.
Therefore, the main recommendation of the OSCE report is to recognize the fate of Ukrainian children as a central topic of any peace negotiations.
The head of “Bring Kids Back UA” Maksym Maskymov an initiative of the President of Ukraine that works to return deported Ukrainian children, notes that Russiaʼs actions pose a threat not only to Ukraine.
"A country that industrially raises children for aggression will sooner or later turn them against everyone. The world must stop this system now, not when these children grow up," Maksymov added.
About the Moscow Mechanism
The Moscow Mechanism is an extraordinary OSCE procedure, established in 1991, that allows participating states to send missions of independent experts to investigate human dimension issues on the territory of another participating state. Such a state is required to cooperate fully with the mission—Russia has refused.
The new investigation was initiated by 41 OSCE participating States on May 14, 2026. This is the sixth expert mission under the Moscow Mechanism on the situation in Ukraine since 2022.
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