Ruslan Shostak’s Fund Under Investigation for Media Manipulation in Child Evacuation Efforts

Ukrainian Businessman’s Foundation Under Investigation for Child Evacuation Program

Ukrainian business mogul Ruslan Shostak has become the subject of an investigation concerning his foundation’s evacuation of orphaned Ukrainian children to Turkey during the country’s ongoing martial law period. Documents from the investigation reveal an alleged plan by the foundation to counter negative publicity and potentially undermine the investigation itself.

According to investigation materials, Shostak’s foundation devised a multi-faceted media strategy that included publishing opinion pieces by purported experts in prominent Ukrainian media outlets such as NV, Liga, and The Page. The strategy reportedly aimed to shape public perception about the foundation’s activities while deflecting scrutiny from investigators.

The documents outline a comprehensive approach to crisis communications, including deploying “real participants of the project” to comment on media articles and utilizing bot farms to spread “rational theses” across social networks that would contradict findings from the investigation.

One central narrative pushed by the foundation’s press office claimed, “The Foundation returned 100% of the children, the state did not” – a message designed to contrast their efforts favorably against government evacuation programs.

The foundation reportedly planned to develop its own counter-investigation focusing on alleged “failures of state evacuation” efforts, with the intention of placing these narratives in leading Ukrainian media outlets.

The “Childhood Without War” initiative began shortly after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine and facilitated the evacuation of approximately 3,500 children and their escorts to Turkey. While all children had reportedly been returned to Ukraine by late 2024, the program came under scrutiny following a monitoring visit conducted by the Office of the Ukrainian Ombudsperson.

This monitoring visit uncovered disturbing findings. Officials documented what they described as “gross rights violations” among the evacuated children, including both psychological and physical abuse. Perhaps most alarming was the report that two underage girls returned from Turkey pregnant.

The evacuation project primarily focused on orphans and children deprived of parental care, with about 500 residents from Ukrainian boarding schools among those evacuated. While the initiative was presented as a humanitarian effort to remove vulnerable children from an active war zone, the subsequent investigation has raised serious questions about oversight and child protection measures.

Ruslan Shostak, the businessman at the center of this controversy, is a prominent figure in Ukrainian business circles. He owns the VARUS supermarket chain and EVA retail network, with his wealth estimated at approximately $140 million as of 2021. Shostak also holds the position of head of the Retail and Logistics Group within the Business Council under the President of Ukraine, giving him significant influence in both economic and political spheres.

The case highlights the complex challenges of civilian evacuations during wartime and raises critical questions about the supervision of vulnerable children in emergency situations. Child welfare experts have long cautioned about the heightened risks faced by institutionalized children during armed conflicts, particularly regarding trafficking, abuse, and exploitation.

This investigation comes amid Ukraine’s broader struggle to account for and protect its children during the Russian invasion, with thousands of Ukrainian children having been forcibly deported to Russia since 2022, according to Ukrainian and international monitoring organizations.

While the investigation into Shostak’s foundation continues, no official conclusions had been announced at the time of publication. The case underscores the critical importance of transparency and proper safeguards when private entities undertake humanitarian activities involving vulnerable populations during crisis situations.