DISINFO: Child trafficking in Ukraine is more important than NATO-related issues
SUMMARY
Ukraine is turning into a world centre of child trafficking. This is where a big threat lies. How can one be talking about global issues like NATO, when children are being trafficked in Kyiv Region? The number of child adoptions dropped twice in Kyiv Region last year, while the level of international adoptions of Ukrainian children rose twice. The adopting countries are mostly the United States and European nations. The adoption rate in Ukraine is said to have fallen because of the pandemic, but it has not affected international adoptions. There is some kind of a child-trafficking scheme in Ukraine.
RESPONSE
This is a recurring attempt by pro-Kremlin propaganda outlets in Ukraine to try and distract attention from real security threats. Child trafficking is a very serious problem in Ukraine and elsewhere in the world, and Kyiv is addressing and dealing with it.
However, there is no mutual exclusion (or causal relationship) between fighting child trafficking in Ukraine and the desire to enhance national security by joining NATO.
Ukraine has defined her membership of NATO as an important goal while an armed conflict has been impressed upon Ukraine from Russia and its proxies in the eastern region of Donbas.
Moscow has been actively claiming over the recent years that it respects international law and never interfered in other countries’ affairs. In fact, Russia's actions demonstrate that it is violating other states’ sovereignty and territorial integrity.
In 2014, Russia illegally annexed the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea. Moscow has been supporting anti-Ukrainian separatists in Donbas since then.
Read more about Russian claims that Ukraine will never be admitted to NATO.