In brief: Slovakia formally joined the International Coalition for the Return of Ukrainian Children on Monday, Nov. 2, State Secretary for EU Affairs Marek Eštok announced. The move came weeks after Bratislava drew scrutiny as the only EU member state not to endorse the Toronto Pledge on unlawfully deported children. Since returning to office in late 2023, Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico has continued to cultivate ties with the Kremlin, subsequently halting support for Ukraine.
Slovakia has joined the International Coalition for the Return of Ukrainian Children, weeks after drawing scrutiny as the only EU member state to refuse to endorse the Toronto Pledge – an international declaration on bringing back deported Ukrainian children.
SlovakianState Secretary for EU Affairs Marek Eštok announced the decision in a statement on Monday, Nov. 2, saying he had formalized it by handing a diplomatic note on Bratislava’s decision to the Ukrainian and Canadian ambassadors.
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“Our shared goal is to see these children safely reunited with their families and back home,” Eštok said.
However, it remains unclear whether Slovakia intends to endorse the Toronto Pledge.
Support beyond the coalition
Slovakia’s assistance extends well beyond the newly joined coalition, according to Eštok, who pointed to Bratislava’s help in renovating school shelters in Ukraine.
The country has also “welcomed thousands of Ukrainian children” into its education system and organized stays in Slovakia for the children of Ukrainian emergency workers and police officers, he said.
Toronto Pledge controversy
The announcement marks a stark change in tone from Bratislava.
In early October, the country came under fire after it refused to endorse the Toronto Pledge, a declaration adopted on Sept. 29 that commits signatories to securing the return of Ukrainian children forcibly and unlawfully taken to Russia.
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Among the 27 EU member countries, Slovakia was the sole exception in refusing to participate.
Bratislava’s absence initially drew limited attention until the opposition Freedom and Solidarity party (SaS) disclosed the refusal on Oct. 9, calling it an “international disgrace.” The party also accused Prime Minister Robert Fico’s government of collaborating with the Kremlin.
Since returning to power in late 2023, Fico has ended state-funded military aid to Ukraine, repeatedly stalled EU sanctions on Russia’s energy sector and traveled to Moscow in May for Victory Day commemorations alongside Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The refusal was also criticized by several Slovak civil society groups, which warned that it could damage the country’s standing within both the EU and NATO.
In March 2023, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Putin and Russian Children’s Rights Commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova, charging them with the war crime of unlawfully deporting and transferring children from occupied territories of Ukraine to Russia.
On Sept. 18, US President Donald Trump signed into law a sanctions act that makes the forced deportation and unlawful detention of Ukrainian children grounds for mandatory US penalties, including asset freezes and travel bans.
However, signing the measure into law does not guarantee it will be enforced. Washington could choose to bypass it altogether, as it did when it struck the abrupt diesel deal with Moscow on Oct. 9.
As of June 4, Russia has killed 707 Ukrainian children, injured 2,548 others and left 2,318 missing since the beginning of the full-scale war in February 2022.
According to Ukraine’s human rights commissioner Dmytro Lubinets, the figures may be significantly higher due to limited access to information in Russian-occupied territories.
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