Since February 2022, thousands of Ukrainian children have disappeared into Russia. Sources report numbers ranging from 19,000 to 700,000 children, 90% of whom have living parents. Family separations in Ukraine parallel those of disappeared children 1970s-1990s from Argentina, El Salvador, and Chile—situations in which DNA was used to reconnect genetic family members, in most cases not until decades later. The utility of DNA in responding to past Latin American separations is clear. Now steps are being taken to use DNA strategies, including Rapid DNA, to verify genetic relationships and ultimately reunify Ukrainian families. The political and wartime tragedies will take decades to resolve, but for families who can be reunified, barriers to using DNA should not contribute to delays. The window for implementing DNA strategies for some families can close quickly in unstable wartime circumstances due to migration, disappearance, illegal adoption, or death. Decades of experience and ELSI-informed strategies can inform DNA applications in Ukraine. Through our ethnography, we have observed several barriers impeding implementation in Ukraine: (1) navigating the process during wartime; (2) defining disaster response roles of various groups; (3) coordinating and meeting capacity appropriate to need; (4) lack of trust in some organizations; (5) lack of awareness of DNA approaches and potential protections; (6) distinguishing disinformation (wartime propaganda) and misinformation; and (7) diaspora of families. Learning from the past is imperative to avoid repeating history. Addressing barriers in Ukraine and learning from the process can feed into the creation of global strategies to facilitate family reunifications.
