Revealed: Melania Trump's vague letter to Putin about ‘children's laughter'

The Age

3 days ago

Washington: The text of Melania Trump's letter to Vladimir Putin has been revealed, showing the First Lady implored the Russian president to protect innocent children, but did not explicitly raise the plight of thousands of abducted Ukrainian minors.
US President Donald Trump hand-delivered his wife's letter to Putin as they met in Alaska on the weekend for a historic summit that was intended to progress an end to the war in Ukraine, which began in 2022 when Russia launched its full-scale invasion.
In that time, Russia has been accused of forcibly transferring – or kidnapping – thousands of Ukrainian children from families and orphanages in occupied regions of Ukraine and sending them to Russia and Belarus.
Ukraine has called the abductions a war crime that rises to the United Nations definition of genocide, and also alleges stolen children are being conscripted into the Russian army when they turn 18. Previously Moscow has said it has been protecting vulnerable children from a war zone.
In the newly revealed letter, the First Lady wrote: 'Every child shares the same quiet dreams in their heart, whether born randomly into a nation's rustic countryside or a magnificent city-centre. They dream of love, possibility and safety from danger.
'As parents, it is our duty to nurture the next generation's hope. As leaders, the responsibility to sustain our children extends beyond the comfort of a few. Undeniably, we must strive to paint a dignity-filled world for all – so that every soul may wake to peace, and so that the future itself is perfectly guarded.
'A simple yet profound concept, Mr Putin, as I'm sure you agree, is that each generation's descendants begin their lives with a purity – an innocence which stands above geography, government and ideology.
'Yet in today's world, some children are forced to carry a quiet laughter, untouched by the darkness around them – a silent defiance against the forces that can potentially claim their future. Mr Putin, you can single-handedly restore their melodic laughter.