The photograph rests on my desk: Anhelina Halych, a small girl, still a toddler, her eyes bright with a smile that no longer exists. Born in Kyiv in October 2022, she loved drawing, was learning English, and could recognize colors. On Aug. 28, 2025, a Russian missile erased her entire world. Her mother, Nadiya, died beside her. One child. One story among thousands.

I write not only as a governmental official, but also as a witness to systematic evil. Russia’s war against Ukraine is a war against children, a calculated, merciless assault on the most vulnerable. The numbers are staggering. Confirmed deaths of 661 children. More than 2,200 wounded. But these are just the verified statistics from territories under Ukrainian control.