Skip to content
Edit post

Ukraine's first lady: ‘A threat to our children is a threat to all children’

by The Kyiv Independent news desk June 4, 2023 6:33 PM 3 min read
First Lady Olena Zelenska delivers a speech during the opening of the monument commemorating the Ukrainian children killed by Russia's war in Kharkiv on June 4. (Olena Zelenska/Telegram)
This audio is created with AI assistance

On June 4, the International Day of Innocent Children Victims of Aggression, First Lady Olena Zelenska visited Kharkiv to commemorate Ukrainian children killed by the Russian war.

As of today, at least 485 children have been killed, and 1,005 have been injured, since the beginning of the all-out war in February 2022, according to the General Prosecutor’s Office.

“This pain can not be comprehended. In the 21st century, in the middle of Europe, we are forced to talk about protecting our children from physical destruction,” Zelenska, who has two children with Volodymyr Zelensky, wrote in a statement.

“But the world must realize, if it hasn't realized yet: a threat to our children is a threat to all children. Childhood has no borders,” she wrote.

In Kharkiv, Zelenska delivered a speech during the opening of the monument commemorating the killed children.

“It is difficult to open monuments to those killed. Especially if these killed are children,” Zelenska said, trying to hold back tears.

“I remember a photo of a father holding the hand of his son who was killed at a bus stop here in Kharkiv,” she went on. “Parents hold their children's hand when they learn to walk. Parents hold their children's hand when they take them to kindergarten or school for the first time. And the most terrible thing is when parents hold the hands of the children who have been killed.”

“To the little angels who encountered human cruelty so early and who, unfortunately, will never become adults,” reads the inscription on the monument.

A commemoration ceremony was also held In Kyiv, during which authorities and citizens hung little bells on trees, “symbolizing the voices of the killed children,” according to Kyiv City Military Administration.

People hang bells on a tree, “symbolizing the voices of the killed children,” during a commemoration ceremony in Kyiv on June 4. (Kyiv City Military Administration/Telegram)

Children are among the most vulnerable groups in Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Among the latest casualties is a two-year-old girl who was killed when an apartment building was hit by a Russian missile strike in the town of Pidhorodne in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast on June 3.

Apart from physical threats due to Russian attacks, over 19,500 children have been abducted by the Russian authorities.

Explainer: What we know about Russia’s deportation of Ukrainian children
In March, the International Criminal Court made a historic ruling: It issued arrest warrants for Russian President Vladimir Putin and Maria Lvova-Belova, the Russian official overseeing the forced deportations of Ukrainian children to Russia. The statement by ICC says that Putin is “allegedly respo…

The kidnapped children are submitted to re-education to instill “pro-Russia patriotic values" and "assigned" to Russian adoptive and foster families.

The Ukrainian government and non-governmental institutions are working on their safe return. According to the "Children of War" database, so far only 371 of them have been safely returned to their families.

The little victims: Russia’s war killed these children
On a warm day in early September, Anastasiia Kolchyna took her nine-year-old sons, twin brothers Ruslan and Denys, for a walk. They went to a small park in their native Zelenodolsk, a town in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, where many locals would gather on the weekends. The family was enjoying the outdoor…
Support independent journalism in Ukraine. Join us in this fight.
Freedom can be costly. Both Ukraine and its journalists are paying a high price for their independence. Support independent journalism in its darkest hour. Support us for as little as $1, and it only takes a minute.
visa masterCard americanExpress

News Feed

1:00 PM

Reuters: Putin to visit China in May.

This might be Putin's first trip abroad after he secured his fifth term in office in the recent presidential election, broadly regarded as rigged and unfair.
Ukraine Daily
News from Ukraine in your inbox
Ukraine news
Please, enter correct email address
10:43 AM

Media: Kuleba expected to visit India later in March.

Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba is expected to visit India later this month, marking the first trip by a Ukrainian high-level official to the country since the outbreak of the full-scale war, The Hindu reported on March 19, citing an undisclosed diplomatic source.
8:55 AM

Military reports strengthening fortifications in Sumy Oblast.

Ukrainian forces are strengthening the fortifications of the first, second, and third lines of defense in Sumy Oblast bordering Russia amid intensified attacks, Vadym Mysnyk, a spokesperson for the Ukrainian military's Northern Operational Command, told Ukrinform on March 18.
8:34 AM

Serbian court opens retrial of fugitive ex-SBU official.

Andrii Naumov pleaded not guilty to the charges raised against him, but his lawyers confirmed that at the time of his detention, the ex-SBU official was carrying cash in a larger amount than permitted while crossing the border.
5:08 AM

Politico: Xi Jinping to visit France in May.

Chinese President Xi Jinping will meet with French President Emmanuel Macron in France this May, Politico reported on March 18. This would be the Chinese leader's first visit to Europe since the pandemic.
3:37 AM

Russia attacks 11 communities in Sumy Oblast.

Russian forces struck 11 communities in Ukraine's northeastern Sumy Oblast in 50 separate attacks throughout the day, the Sumy Oblast Military Administration reported on March 18.
12:22 AM

Charles Michel: ‘Europe must prepare for war.’

If Europe wants to exist in peace it must shift to a “war economy” mode and significantly bolster defense capabilities in the face of the threat posed by Russia, European Council President Charles Michel said on March 18.
MORE NEWS

Editors' Picks

Enter your email to subscribe
Please, enter correct email address
Subscribe
* indicates required
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required

Subscribe

* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required

Subscribe

* indicates required
Successfuly subscribed
Thank you for signing up for this newsletter. We’ve sent you a confirmation email.