US to resume funding for program to track Ukrainian children abducted by Russia
The United States will briefly fund the Ukraine Conflict Observatory to transfer data on thousands of children abducted by Russia, Reuters reports, reversing a Trump administration pause amid concerns over lost evidence.
The initiative is led by Yale University’s Humanitarian Research Lab to document Ukrainian children abducted by Russia.
"Funding is being provided for a short period while the Conflict Observatory implementers ensure the proper transfer of the critical data on the children to the appropriate authorities," a State Department spokesperson said.
The program’s suspension was revealed on March 14, following President Donald Trump’s order for a broad review to curb what he called wasteful spending of U.S. taxpayer dollars on efforts misaligned with American interests.
In December 2024, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told CBN that 19,500 child abductions by Russia had been confirmed, with the Observatory tracking thousands of cases.
The pause sparked fears of losing access to data on approximately 30,000 abducted children, including satellite imagery.
On March 18, reports suggested the suspension might have led to the deletion of information on 35,000 children, though the State Department denied this on March 19.
The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants on March 17, 2023, for Russian leader Vladimir Putin and children’s rights commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova over their roles in the abductions.
