The presence of Russian citizenship of Ukrainian children forcibly deported to the Russian Federation is not a legal obstacle to their return home, since the decrees of the leadership of the Russian Federation, contrary to international law, are not recognized by either Ukraine or the international community, Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin notes.

"This is the third decree from him (Putin) since May last year, simplifying the procedure for obtaining Russian citizenship. Of course, Ukraine does not recognize any decisions of the aggressor country to change the citizenship of Ukrainian children. We consider these decrees as components of the criminal intent of the Russian government," the Prosecutor General said in an exclusive interview with Interfax-Ukraine.

He noted that the decrees of any country cannot go against the norms of international law.

"International law always takes precedence. Therefore, it does not matter at all for us and for the international community which decrees and legislation the Russian Federation adopts if they contradict the norms of international law," Kostin stressed.

Speaking about how to return Ukrainian children home, the Prosecutor General explained that one component of this issue is to bring to justice all those involved in the commission of these crimes.

"The second is the work of the international coalition for the return of Ukrainian children. This coalition will be powerful – you can already see that from time to time it is possible to return children," the Prosecutor General drew attention.

According to Kostin, international legislation clearly articulates the obligations of the Russian Federation: civilians, including children, must be returned. "There are many institutions, but they cannot yet force Russia to return Ukrainian children. In fact, the actions of the aggressor in this matter are the same as the actions of the Nazis during World War II," he added.

In this regard, the Prosecutor General focused on cooperation with international partners to create such a mechanism that would make it possible to return illegally deported children and, in general, all civilians of Ukraine.