Kiev estimates that nearly 19,500 children have been brought to Russia since Moscow invaded in February last year. The children were taken to what Russians call summer camps from occupied parts of Ukraine's Kharkov Kherson regions.
A grandmother who was supposed to be reunited with two of her grandchildren died suddenly on the trip and the children had to stay in Russia. Moscow, which controls parts of eastern and southern Ukraine, denies abducting children and says they have been evacuated for their own safety.