Today, June 4, Ukraine and the global Ukrainian community mourn and commemorate the Day of Remembrance of Children who died due to the Armed Aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine. The Verkhovna Rada initiated the commemoration on June 1, 2021.
The date is not coincidental, as June 4 is annually observed as the International Day of Innocent Children Victims of Aggression, established by the United Nations General Assembly on August 9, 1982.
Since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale aggression against Ukraine, the number of young Ukrainians who have died due to the occupiers’ genocidal aggression has significantly increased. As of the morning of June 1, 2024, according to juvenile prosecutors, more than 1914 children have been affected, over 1364 have been injured, and 550 children have died since the start of the full-scale invasion.
The global Ukrainian community is also joining the commemoration. In particular, the Ukrainian Canadian Congress—Alberta Provincial Council (UCC-APC) has called for spreading the truth about Russia’s crimes in Ukraine. The community has created posters with quotes from Ukrainian children affected by the war and urged people to spread them on city streets.
The Ukrainian community in the UAE also called for efforts to create a world where every child can grow up in a safe environment, where children are not targets. Yevheniy Semenov, UWC Vice President, Middle East and Central Asia, urged spreading the truth about the children killed by Russia and preserving the bright memory of each child.
On June 1, to mark International Children’s Day, Ukrainian communities in Paris, Berlin, Budapest, Melbourne, Bilbao, and Auckland supported the UWC initiative and held rallies calling for the urgent provision of air defense systems to Ukraine to protect the skies and save children’s lives.
