Opposition Calls on Gov't to Join Coalition for Return of Ukrainian Children

Bratislava, 23 April (TASR) - Opposition parties organised a news conference on Thursday to announce that they are submitting a joint resolution to Parliament calling on the government to join the International Coalition for the Return of Ukrainian Children and the International Reparations Commission. "In the European Union, only Cyprus, Hungary and Slovakia are still missing from this coalition. We view this as a scandal and a moral failure. It's a huge mistake," said MP Branislav Skripek (Christian Democrats/KDH). In addition to Skripek, MPs Lucia Plavakova (Progressive Slovakia/PS), Maria Kolikova (Freedom and Soolidarity/SaS), Anezka Skopova ('Slovakia' party-For the People), Lubomir Galko (Independent) and MEP Miriam Lexmann (KDH) spoke at the news conference. They condemned the abduction of Ukrainian children to Russia and criticised the government's stance on the issue. "We're standing here as a strong opposition bloc, sending a clear signal that child protection is the most fundamental issue. It's all the more surprising, therefore, that the coalition has long ignored, relativised or avoided this topic, as if it weren't one of the most serious humanitarian issues of our time. If 700,000 children have been abducted from Ukraine to Russia, it's terrible, and we can't pretend that it doesn't concern us," said Kolikova. ko/df