Liubov Rozhanska was detained in Astana while attempting to retrieve her grandson, who is the subject of a long-standing custody battle between his Ukrainian father and Russian relatives.
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ManyPress Editorial
Key facts
- •Liubov Rozhanska was detained upon arrival in Astana on October 1 after flying from Istanbul.
- •The child at the center of the dispute was born in Odesa in 2018 and later granted Russian citizenship.
- •Ukraine’s Supreme Court ruled in March 2025 that the boy should live with his father in Odesa.
- •Russia is pursuing the detention through the Collective Security Treaty Organization, a security alliance including Kazakhstan.
- •Lawyers for Rozhanska claim she was unaware of the Russian criminal case and had never entered Russia.
Kazakh authorities detained Ukrainian citizen Liubov Rozhanska at the Astana airport on October 1 following a request from Russia. Rozhanska had traveled to Kazakhstan from Istanbul to collect her grandson, whose return to Ukraine had been ordered by the Ukrainian Supreme Court in March 2025. Russia is seeking her detention through the Collective Security Treaty Organization, alleging she attempted to abduct the child.
Background of the Custody Dispute
The child was born in Odesa in 2018. In 2021, his mother moved with him to the Kaliningrad region of Russia to join her second husband. Following the 2022 invasion, the mother and child renounced their Ukrainian citizenship and obtained Russian citizenship. While the child's Ukrainian father challenged the residence status in court, Russian relatives reportedly initiated contact with Rozhanska in July 2026 to arrange for the boy's transfer to his father and grandmother.
Detention and Legal Allegations
Lawyer Oleksii Pryanishnikov stated that while the handover was being negotiated, Russian authorities were preparing to place Rozhanska on a wanted list. A Kaliningrad court issued a warrant for her arrest on August 27, 2026, citing an alleged abduction attempt. Her legal counsel characterized the detention as a planned operation by the Russian Federal Security Service. Rozhanska is currently held in a Kazakh pretrial detention center, with a court hearing expected within three days.
Timeline
- August 2021The child and his mother moved from Odesa to the Kaliningrad region.
- March 2025Ukraine’s Supreme Court ruled that the child must live in Odesa with his father.
- August 27, 2026A Kaliningrad court issued a warrant for the arrest of Liubov Rozhanska.
- October 1, 2026Rozhanska was detained at the airport in Astana, Kazakhstan.
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This article was independently rewritten by ManyPress editorial AI from reporting originally published by Euromaidan Press, Meduza (English), The Insider (Russia).
