On the morning that Russia invaded Ukraine, last Thursday (24), Bruna Alves’ cell phone did not stop ringing. There were couples from various parts of Brazil wanting to know if their children are protected amidst the war scenario in the capital, Kiev.
The babies have not yet been born: they are the result of surrogacy, a legal practice in Ukraine, which has become one of the main destinations for families in Brazil and other countries for having a more affordable price than average.
Alves is director of the Brazilian operation of an international agency dedicated to surrogacy – or “surrogacy” in English. Based in Israel, Tammuz Family currently serves more than 150 couples with proceedings underway in Ukraine, including 35 Brazilians.
“I lost count of how many calls I received today. They are scared, they want to know if the clinic is safe, if the pregnant women are safe, what will happen to the embryos that are there”, he said.
The answer to that last question came the next morning: “I’ve just been informed that the clinic has finished transporting embryos to a bunker,” she told the report via cell phone message. If necessary, there are plans to remove this genetic material even to other countries, she added.
Those who are still at the beginning of the process can choose to transfer the procedure to another country, for example Georgia. In the case of surrogate women – that is, Ukrainian women who are already pregnant with these couples’ babies – the agency offered to transfer them from Kiev to another, safer city on the Polish border, along with their families.
Most accepted, and all those who carry children of Brazilians are already out of the capital, says Alves. The trips have been going on since last week. “Fortunately, in the case of Brazilians, we don’t have anyone waiting for childbirth for now. Pregnant women are still in the first or second trimester”, says the director.
Alves says that the agency has already dealt with other crises, including the closing of borders due to the Covid-19 pandemic. “We have contingency plans. But we know it’s a very stressful situation for couples.”
“The news worries us a lot. In addition to all the suffering of the people who live there, we fear for the safety of our embryos”, says Juliana.
The Brazilian, who asked not to have her real name revealed, sent the embryos to Ukraine two months ago. “It’s a delicate moment, as while we are in a hurry, we would like to have a peaceful situation first.”
Author of a blog on human reproduction, the American Alison Motluk researched how the surrogacy industry has responded to the war and listed the problems that can arise in these circumstances.
In addition to the obvious risk to life, power cuts could damage stored embryos and gametes, cyberattacks could bring down heating or internet networks, and pregnant women may have to be sent to other countries with different laws on human reproduction and registration of children.
Ukraine allows surrogacy only for officially married heterosexual couples, and a medical report certifying the impossibility of carrying a pregnancy must be presented. The average price of the procedure is US$ 50,000, practically half of what is paid in the United States, for example.
After the baby is born, it undergoes DNA testing to prove that the people who hired the surrogate are really the parents. The Ukrainian birth certificate is then made, and only then can the child receive the Brazilian documents at the embassy, ​​which allow him to travel.
Brazilians are underground in Kiev with a newborn
Reports published in countries such as Australia, Ireland and England bring cases of families who went to pick up their babies in Ukraine and are unable to return home.
At least one Brazilian couple is in this situation. Judicial technician Kelly Wilke, 39, and her husband, Fábio Wilke, 43, are sheltering with their newborn daughter Mikaela in the basement of a residential building in Kiev, with 30 more adults, eight babies and three children up to 3 years old.
The agency that served them, BioTexCom, showed them, before the start of the war, a bunker that it had prepared to receive foreigners who were in the country. A video posted by the company on social media shows what the environment is like, with piles of diapers, canned food, camouflaged sleeping bags and gas masks. “I think that if they intended to take us there, chaos ensued and prevented them. But today I wouldn’t risk going out on the street to get there”, says the Brazilian.
The return flight of the three, scheduled for this Sunday (27), was cancelled. They tried to leave Kiev by land, but found no vehicles available. “Whoever has a car is out of gas. The orientation now is that no one leaves because there is the possibility of air strikes. The Ukrainian government said that if someone from the army finds you on the street, you will be considered an enemy”, reports Kelly.
This Saturday, with fighting in the center of the capital, the feeling of insecurity increased. “We went up to the apartment to sterilize the bottles and bathe Mikaela. We intended to stay there a little longer, but we heard the explosions and thought it was better to go downstairs”, she says.
The embassy also advised them not to leave where they are. “They said that as soon as the situation improves, they will put our withdrawal into practice.”
The Itamaraty was contacted to inform what type of assistance it has given to families in this situation, but did not respond until the publication of this report.
With a ticket purchased for March 13, another Brazilian couple is apprehensive, not knowing if they will be able to board to pick up their son.
Michele (not real name), 38, sought surrogacy after failing to conceive due to cancer. She and her husband are distressed because they can’t get any news on how the Ukrainian woman who is bearing the baby is doing.
“Many families do not know how to proceed and are unable to contact the clinic or the women who are bearing the child. Services are compromised and the registry offices are closed”, says businesswoman Camila Pavan Garbelini, 34, who had daughter Pietra in June 2020, in Ukraine, and today supports other couples going through the process.
Despite not having gone through a war, she also faced barriers to pick up her daughter due to the closed borders during the pandemic. She had to ask permission from three countries (Germany, Holland and Ukraine), in addition to Brazil’s help, to be able to travel.
Camila has a muscular dystrophy that prevents her from having a full pregnancy. “We looked for adoption and supportive maternity until we arrived at the only treatment that really brought my dream to me, surrogacy”, she says. “I saw in this process my last chance to become a mother.”
