New child adoptions between Canada, Ukraine on hold due to war

Canada has pushed pause on child adoptions from Ukraine due to Russia's ongoing invasion of the country, now more than two weeks in.

When asked about a pause in child adoptions between Canada and Ukraine, a spokesperson for Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) said in a statement that due to the armed conflict, "only adoption cases where an adoption decision has already been granted will move forward."

This, the spokesperson said, is being done to "protect the safety of all children and the integrity of the intercountry adoption process," adding that it is a "recognized international principle" to not undertake intercountry adoptions during armed conflicts or natural disasters.

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"We continue to prioritize citizenship grant applications for adoptions that were already duly completed under Ukrainian law," the statement said.

"We will continue to monitor developments in the region, track application processing closely and take action where needed to support those affected by the situation in Ukraine."

Nearly 2.6 million people have fled Ukraine since Russia launched its invasion in late February.

The IRCC spokesperson said as part of the Hague Convention, Canada is committed to preventing irregularities in cross-border adoptions of refugee children.

The spokesperson also pointed to a statement released seven years ago by UNICEF, or the United Nations Children’s Fund, in which the organization and others recommend against expediting adoptions in situations where there is armed conflict or natural disaster, as it could put vulnerable women and children at risk of child trafficking and other abuses.

A joint statement released earlier this month by UNICEF executive director Catherine Russell and United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said hundreds of thousands of the refugees who have fled Ukraine are children, many of them unaccompanied or separated from family and at heightened risk of violence, abuse and exploitation.

"For children who have been displaced across borders without their families, temporary foster or other community-based care through a government system offers critical protection," the statement said.

"Adoption should not occur during or immediately after emergencies. Every effort should be made to reunify children with their families when possible, if such reunification is in their best interest."

The U.S. State Department said as recently as Thursday that it did not know whether adoption cases would be able to proceed in Ukraine.

"Lengthy closures of government and judicial offices are likely to continue for the foreseeable future, and adoption cases are not likely to progress in the near term," the State Department said.

IRCC, meanwhile, says the Canadian government's first priority is protecting the safety and well-being of children involved in international adoptions.

"Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada is sensitive to the emotional stress that can be caused when there are issues with cases involving children," the IRCC spokesperson said.

"Nonetheless, IRCC must take all necessary precautions to ensure that all international adoption cases involving children comply with Canadian laws, international laws, as well as the statutes and regulations of the child's country of origin."

With files from CTVNews.ca Writer Maggie Parkhill