• Military

• WMD Menu                           

• Introduction
• Systems
• Facilities
• Agencies
• Operations
• Countries
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• Intelligence
• Homeland Security
• Space

Minister Budrys: Lithuania will do its utmost to ensure that prisoners of war and abducted Ukrainian children held in Russia return home safely and as soon as possible

Republic of Lithuania - Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Updated 2025-07-21

On 21 July, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Kęstutis Budrys, opened the first international expert-level meeting of the "Safe Pathways Home" initiative in Vilnius. This initiative aims to coordinate international efforts to bring back the abducted Ukrainian children, prisoners of war, and other deported individuals from illegal Russian captivity.

"From children to prisoners of war, every life matters. More than 1.6 million Ukrainian children are still living in Russian-occupied territories, and the number of Ukrainian children illegally deported to Russia is nearly 20,000. Lithuania will do its utmost to ensure that their journey home is safe, dignified, and as swift as possible," said Budrys.

Discussions at the meeting will focus on practical steps to facilitate border crossings, ensure transit possibilities, provide legal and humanitarian assistance, and contribute to the return of unlawfully imprisoned persons or abducted children to their families.

Lithuania expressed its wish to join the "Safe Pathways Home" initiative at the Conference on the Human Dimension of the Peace Formula held in Canada on 31 October 2024. Lithuania is also a member of the International Coalition for the Return of Ukrainian Children, initiated by Canada and Ukraine. This coalition aims to identify practical steps to support Ukraine and its efforts to recover deported children, as well as to contribute to rehabilitation and reintegration of those who have been returned.

At the meeting, the Minister stressed that the only way to peace was through Ukraine's victory and the restoration of justice - the return of territorial integrity, accountability for the aggressor, and justice for war crimes committed. Lithuania will never recognise illegal occupation, neither de jure nor de facto.

The meeting highlighted the role of international organisations in documenting war crimes and called for the effective implementation of their mandates.

The expert-level meeting in Vilnius is a follow-up to last year's conference in Montreal, which focused on human dimension issues and was organised by Ukraine, Canada, and Norway. Experts gathered in Vilnius today affirmed that Europe must remain united and that every person rescued is a step toward a shared, secure future.