Ukraine surrogacy clinic delivers 80th wartime baby

BioTexCom vows to help foreign parents meet their youngsters

Nurses look after surrogate-born babies inside a special shelter owned by BioTexCom clinic in a residential basement on the outskirts of Kyiv. Reuters

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A Ukraine surrogacy clinic has delivered its 80th wartime baby since Russia invaded the country two months ago.

BioTexCom has been caring for surrogate mothers and newborn babies in a bomb shelter and apartments next to its clinic in Ukraine's capital Kyiv.

The company is working with volunteer medics, Warriors Without Borders, to deliver the children safely to their parents across the Polish border.

As it marked the 80th child born, it released a video of one of its surrogate mothers reassuring expectant foreign parents that they were safe.

"The clinic resettled us to a safer place," one of the mums said.

"First we were offered to live in a bomb shelter, located in the clinic. We stayed there in the bomb shelter for a while and then we moved to an apartment next to the clinic so that it would be easier to reach them.

"So, if we needed any help, they could evacuate us immediately. Now everything is fine, it's calm and settled."

The fertility clinic has vowed to unite parents with their newborns as soon as possible.

"It is hard to realise that it has already been two months since the beginning of the war," it said.

"Eighty children were born at BioTexCom during this time. BioTexCom continues to take care of the babies and does everything to unite families with their kids."

US charity Warriors Without Borders has been given an ambulance by Sweden and is gradually moving the babies to safety across the border.

Legal teams around the world are working to help parents to gain access to their children because the babies need to be documented in the birth register. They also have to be issued with a passport so that they can be taken out of the country and their parents recognised as legal guardians.

While parents wait anxiously to meet their newborns, the clinic is reassuring them that their surrogate mothers are safe.

"We are constantly in touch with our surrogate mothers," it said.

"Those who are in Kyiv are accommodated in safe shelters. BioTexCom has also organised apartments and bases for placing surrogate mothers in the regions where it is relatively safe.

"Our surrogate mothers stay in the apartments close to the clinic so that if they need any help, we can promptly provide professional assistance. We are glad to host all mothers who would like to come."

BioTexCom currently has about 600 pregnant surrogate mothers, and at least one child is born every day.

Ukraine is one of the few countries in the world to allow mothers to carry babies for foreigners as a commercial practice.

It is estimated up to 3,000 children are born every year in Ukraine for clients outside the country, including in China, the United States and the EU.