The Ukrainian president thanks Qatar for its role in the return of children who were “forcibly deported” by Russia during the war.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met with the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, during a visit to the Gulf state and expressed his gratitude for Doha's support for Ukraine's “sovereignty and territorial integrity”.

The Ukrainian president’s trip on Wednesday comes as Kyiv seeks to mobilize global support to end the ongoing Russian Invasion.

Zelensky praised Qatar's role in “returning children forcibly deported by Russia.” “We agreed to continue our cooperation in this area,” he said in a social media post.

Kyiv accuses Moscow of abducting thousands of Ukrainian children and young people and bringing them to Russia since the war began in February 2022.

Russia denies these allegations and says the children were brought out of combat zones out of concern for their safety.

In Qatar I met @TamimBinHamadI appreciate Qatar's support for Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity, as well as all key UN resolutions condemning Russian aggression.

It is important that Qatar supports the peace formula. We have talked about the preparations for the… pic.twitter.com/0ZvcPcgLnA

— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Volodymyr Zelensky (@ZelenskyyUa) June 5, 2024

In March 2023, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued a arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin for the alleged “war crime of illegal deportation of population (children)” from the territories occupied by Ukraine to Russia.

Qatar has helped broker agreements to reunite Ukrainian children with their families, including 16 in April and six last month.

Qatari President Amiri Diwan said on Wednesday that Sheikh Tamim had discussed recent developments with Zelensky, including “the international community's efforts to end the fighting and protect civilians, as well as keeping all channels of communication open to resolve the crisis through dialogue.”

It was further stated that the two heads of state also discussed issues of “mutual importance” for both countries.

Zelensky is scheduled to meet with US President Joe Biden in Normandy, France, this week, ahead of an international summit to resolve the war in Ukraine, which will take place in Switzerland later this month.

“While [Biden] “When he is in Normandy, he will have the opportunity to meet with President Zelensky and talk to him about the situation in Ukraine and how we can continue and deepen our support for Ukraine,” US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said on Tuesday.

Russia launched its comprehensive invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022. Ukrainian forces halted the Russian advance on Kyiv early in the war and pushed back Kremlin troops in some areas. But the conflict slowly evolved into a protracted war, with most of the fighting taking place in eastern Ukraine.

A Ukrainian counter-offensive last year failed to bring the country any significant territorial gains. In recent weeks, Russia has renewed attacks about the city of Kharkiv in north-eastern Ukraine.

Last week, several Western countries, including the United States, said they had given Kiev the green light to attack targets in Russia with weapons donated by the West in order to Protect Kharkiv.