Coronavirus: Ban on foreigners entering Ukraine leaves surrogate babies stranded

KIEV — Lying in rows of cots in a small hotel on the outskirts of Kiev, 51 babies born to surrogate mothers are stranded in Ukraine as the coronavirus lockdown is preventing parents from the United States, Europe and elsewhere from collecting them.

Ukraine imposed a ban on foreigners entering in March, and most parents have only seen their newborns through pictures and video calls with the clinic.

Rafa Aires from Spain managed to get in before the lockdown. He was united with his daughter Marta but cannot leave as Kiev has suspended almost all flights and he needs to finish the paperwork.

It means a stressful wait for his wife Maria, who was unable to travel with him due to work.

“Every day I make video calls with my wife for one hour or an hour and a half for her to see the baby,” he said. “It is very difficult.”

“Nurses and medical personnel in this hotel are wonderful. They make my life easier,” he said.

The government says it can only permit parents to enter Ukraine if it receives a request from the relevant embassy.

Parents arrive from all over the world including the United States, China, Britain, Sweden and Ireland. The parents of sixteen of the babies have been able to travel to Ukraine so far.

“The children are all provided with food, a sufficient number of employees look after them, but there is no substitute for parental care,” said Denis Herman, BioTexCom’s lawyer.

“We try to send photos of children to the parents, we try to make conference calls, but this cannot replace communication in direct contact,” he said.

—Writing by Matthias Williams; editing by Janet Lawrence

Source: Read Full Article