By our correspondent

More than 80 international representatives are meeting in Toronto today for the start of Pathways to Peace: Second International Conference on Returning Ukrainian Children, Detained Civilians and Prisoners of War.

It is expected that states will commit to a binding operational framework to enforce the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) and the Geneva Conventions, strengthening coordinated mechanisms to trace, repatriate, and reintegrate unlawfully deported children.

The two-day conference is co-hosted by Canada, Norway and Ukraine. It will review progress under the Montreal Pledge, the roadmap for returning deported children, prisoners of war and unlawfully detained civilians launched in October 2024.

Delegates will also agree practical next steps on tracing, return, protection and reintegration. Participating countries come from Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, the Middle East, the Asia-Pacific, as well as Europe.

News and materials will be shared throughout the conference as developments occur, with a final release with photographs and overall outcomes published at the end of the conference.

Ukrainian authorities have documented and verified 20,651 cases of deportation or forcible transfer of children.
As of 28 September 2026, 2,644 children returned home in the framework of Bring Kids Back UA.

*Bring Kids Back UA is an initiative by President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy* that unites and coordinates efforts of government institutions, non-governmental organizations, and international partners to return all Ukrainian children who were deported or forcibly transferred by the Russian Federation. The initiative was officially launched by President Zelenskyy on May 31, 2023.