Inside the ‘underground railroad’ Ukraine is using to bring back children from Russia

Inside the ‘underground railroad’ Ukraine is using to bring back children from Russia

Rostyslav Lavrov, a 19-year-old from Ukraine’s Kherson region, faced an urgent decision after being sent to a Russian naval academy in occupied Crimea at age 16. The school had attempted to issue him a new Russian birth certificate to erase his Ukrainian identity. Determined to resist, Lavrov orchestrated a covert escape in October 2023, walking out of his dorm unnoticed and embarking on a risky journey back to Ukraine. Now living in Kyiv, he is among approximately 2,000 children and teens who have returned to their homeland from Russia, Belarus, or Russian-occupied areas.

Many of these children left without official permission, as Russian authorities made it nearly impossible to exit. Ukraine has mobilized global support to pressure Russia into cooperation, but results have been modest. Only 102 of the returned children traveled through formal channels: 83 with Qatar’s assistance and 19 via a program led by U.S. First Lady Melania Trump. Lavrov’s escape required meticulous planning, including timing his departure during a class shift and avoiding detection by wearing his uniform and maintaining routine behavior.

Secret Operations and Risky Exits

With the help of Save Ukraine volunteers, Lavrov executed his plan. “I chose a day when I was assigned to a different building,” he shared with CNN. “I put on my uniform and acted normal so they’d think I was heading to class.” The volunteers waited nearby, ready to assist him. “I didn’t carry anything to stay unnoticed,” he said. “I stayed calm at checkpoints, even though I was scared.” He estimated the trip to Ukrainian-controlled territory took two days. Later, he learned the Russian government had labeled him as “missing and wanted.”

Mykola Kuleba, Save Ukraine’s founder and former children’s ombudsman, described the process as a “special operation” for each child. “We don’t work with Russian officials or anyone in occupied areas,” he explained, emphasizing the danger of sharing details. “If Moscow knows Ukraine wants a child, they’ll do everything to keep them.” Kuleba’s team operates in secrecy, coordinating escapes without revealing their methods to avoid retaliation.

A Mother’s Fight for Her Sons

Yulia Dvornychenko, a widow from Torez, experienced this firsthand. In 2021, she was arrested by pro-Russia separatists and accused of being a Ukrainian spy. Her sons, Danylo (17) and Mark (9), were separated from her. Forced to sign a false confession, she agreed to send them to a Russian orphanage. After an 18-month POW exchange, she was released, but her sons remained in Russia. Mark, now 11, stayed with a family friend in Torez, while Danylo fled to Moscow to avoid conscription.

Dvornychenko began working with Ukrainian government officials to secure their return. Russian authorities initially offered Mark back through a POW exchange, but the conditions shifted. The Russian Commissioner for Human Rights demanded she personally retrieve him, a step Ukraine refused to avoid re-arrest. Her sons’ fate highlights the broader crisis: Ukraine is increasingly a nation of widows and orphans, facing a demographic “catastrophe” as families are torn apart by conflict.