The British government has imposed sanctions on eight individuals and three organisations for their alleged roles in Russia’s campaign to forcibly deport, indoctrinate and militarise Ukrainian children. The measures are part of wider efforts to counter what Britain says is a deliberate policy of Russification in occupied Ukrainian territories — targeting schools, orphanages and vulnerable children.

Bermuda’s Financial Sanctions Implementation Unit has added those individuals and entities to its sanctions list.

Bermudian-registered companies are required to act immediately when new sanctions are issued, according to the unit. They must check whether they hold any accounts or resources linked to those sanctioned, freeze such assets and ensure no funds or services are made available without a licence. Organisations should also update their internal prohibited lists with the new designations.

British officials estimate that more than 19,500 Ukrainian children have already been deported to Russia or Russian-controlled areas. Of those, some 6,000 are believed to be held in re-education camps where they undergo ideological indoctrination and military-style training, often with the aim of erasing their Ukrainian identity.

At the centre of Britain’s latest sanctions is Leyla Rinatovna Fazleeva, Deputy Prime Minister of Tatarstan, who also chairs the region’s Commission on Juvenile Affairs and the Protection of Children’s Rights. She is accused of directly enforcing Russia’s programme to deport and re-educate Ukrainian children.

Other prominent names include Aymani Kadyrova, mother of Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov and head of the Akhmat Kadyrov Foundation, accused of running “military-patriotic” re-education programmes; and Anastasia Akkuratova, a senior official in Russia’s Ministry of Education, alleged to have supported the deportation of children from occupied areas.

Two major pro-Kremlin youth movements, the Movement of the First and Volunteers of Victory, were also targeted, accused of spreading propaganda and indoctrinating children into Russia’s war effort.

Delisted was Ilya Borisovich Brodskiy, a Russian businessman formerly named as supporting Russia’s war effort.

As the UK’s then-Foreign Secretary, David Lammy, put it: “To take a child from their home and seek to forcibly erase their heritage and upbringing through lies and disinformation can never be tolerated. No child should ever be a pawn of war and that is why we are holding those responsible to account.”

The International Criminal Court has already issued arrest warrants for Vladimir Putin, the President of Russia, and his former children’s rights commissioner, Maria Lvova-Belova, describing the forced transfer of children as a potential war crime. Human rights groups say the practice causes lasting trauma, stripping children of family ties, culture and language.

Russia, for its part, has in many instances denied wrongdoing, described such accusations as “Russophobia” or framed its actions as humanitarian or protective, a stance rejected by Ukraine and many international observers.

Questions may be directed to the FSIU at fsiu@gov.bm

• For the complete list of those most recently sanctioned, see Related Media

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