As Introduced
136th General Assembly
Regular Session S. C. R. No. 21
2025-2026
Senators Patton, Smith
A c o n c u r r e n t R E S O L U T I O N
To condemn the Russian Federation for the wrongful and illegal abduction, forcible transfer, and subsequent illegal adoption and indoctrination of children from Ukraine.
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF OHIO THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES CONCURRING:
WHEREAS, On January 12, 1951, the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (commonly known as the "Genocide Convention"), of which the Russian Federation is a party, came into effect; and
WHEREAS, On February 24, 2022, according to the Council on Foreign Relations, the Russian Federation escalated its eight-year-long occupation of the Ukrainian Crimean peninsula by launching an unprovoked large-scale invasion of Ukraine; and
WHEREAS, on March 9, 2022, Russia attacked a maternity hospital in Mariupol, Ukraine, resulting in the deaths of five individuals and injuries to 17 other individuals; and
WHEREAS, Forcibly transferring children of one national, ethnical, racial, or religious group to another group with intent to destroy the group, in whole or in part, is a violation of Article II of the Genocide Convention; and
WHEREAS, Ukrainian authorities have stated that thousands of Ukrainian children have been abducted and forcibly transferred to Russia despite having families that remain in Ukraine; and
WHEREAS, On June 16, 2022, Russian authorities announced that children born in occupied Ukrainian territories after the February 24, 2022, invasion will be deemed Russian citizens; and
WHEREAS, On July 11, 2022, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres ordered an investigation into the deaths and injuries of Ukrainian children; and
WHEREAS, On July 13, 2022, then Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken issued a statement calling upon Russia to immediately halt its systematic filtration operations in Ukraine that have caused the disappearance, detention, or forcible deportation of between 900,000 and 1.6 million Ukrainian citizens; and
WHEREAS, On February 14, 2023, a report by the Yale Humanitarian Research Lab identified at least 32 facilities in Russia-occupied Crimea and Russia involved in the systematic academic, cultural, patriotic, and military re-education of Ukrainian children; and
WHEREAS, Maria Lvova-Belova, Commissioner for Children's Rights for the President of Russia, has admitted to transferring Ukrainian children to Russia and facilitating their adoptions by Russian families, actions for which she was charged by the International Criminal Court on March 17, 2023, with the war crimes of unlawful deportation of population (children) and unlawful transfer of population (children) from occupied areas of Ukraine to the Russian Federation; and
WHEREAS, On January 25, 2025, then Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee Michael T. McCaul stated that more than 260,000 Ukrainian children have been abducted by Russia, citing U.S. intelligence estimates; now therefore be it
RESOLVED, That we, the members of the 136th General Assembly of the State of Ohio, declare that the abduction and forcible transfer of children and facilitation of illegal adoptions is contrary to Russia's obligations under the Genocide convention and amounts to genocide; and be it further
RESOLVED, That we, the members of the 136th General Assembly of the State of Ohio, declare that the Russian Federation is attempting to wipe out a generation of Ukrainian children, thereby crippling Ukraine's ability to nurture the next generation of Ukrainian citizens and leaders and to rebuild their country after Russia's unprovoked war, with the purpose of demolishing Ukraine's unique language, culture, history, and identity; and be it further
RESOLVED, That we, the members of the 136th General Assembly of the State of Ohio, note with concern that the invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation has significantly increased the risks of children being exposed to human trafficking and exploitation, child labor, gender-based violence, hunger, injury, trauma, deprivation of education and shelter, and death; and be it further
RESOLVED, That we, the members of the 136th General Assembly of the State of Ohio, hold the Russian Federation, under the leadership of Vladimir Putin, responsible for the wrongful and illegal abduction, forcible transfer, and subsequent illegal adoption and indoctrination of children from Ukraine and officially condemn these actions in the strongest terms; and be it further
RESOLVED, That the Clerk of the Senate transmit duly authenticated copies of this resolution to the President Pro Tempore and Secretary of the United States Senate, Speaker and Clerk of the United States House of Representatives, members of the Ohio Congressional delegation, the United States Secretary of State, the United States Ambassador to the United Nations, and the news media of Ohio.