OSCE PA appoints Carina Ödebrink as Special Envoy on abduction and deportation of Ukrainian children – Yermak

President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Pere Joan Pons Sampietro has appointed Swedish MP Carina Ödebrink as Special Envoy on the abduction and deportation of Ukrainian children, Head of the President's Office of Ukraine Andriy Yermak has said.

"President of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly Pere Joan Pons Sampietro has appointed Swedish MP Carina Ödebrink as a special representative on the abduction and deportation of Ukrainian children. This initiative was announced by the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy last week during a meeting with the President of the Parliamentary Assembly. The voice of the OSCE and parliamentarians is important. The role of international partners is key," he said on Telegram on Monday evening.

As Yermak noted, Carina Ödebrink is a member of the Swedish Parliament, a member of the country's delegation to the OSCE, and the author of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly report on the abduction of Ukrainian children by Russia, one of the most hard-hitting documents on the issue.

"She has repeatedly called on OSCE member states to join the International Coalition for the Return of Ukrainian Children and support the initiative of the President of Ukraine Bring Kids Back UA," he added.

"We expect close cooperation. We continue to work to bring every Ukrainian child home," Yermak said.