On February 24, Australia and New Zealand imposed sanctions on Aimani Kadyrova, president of the Akhmat Kadyrov Charitable Foundation and the mother of Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov, for her alleged involvement in the "removal of children from the territory of Ukraine."

Ramzan Kadyrov ridiculed the sanctions, stating that it was amusing for countries so distant from Russia to join the "sanctions race" without any real connection to his country. He dismissed the accusations as "ridiculous," arguing that if children had been taken from Ukraine, they were orphans from a war zone who lacked protection and basic living conditions. Kadyrov criticized Western politicians for punishing those who help vulnerable children instead of addressing the circumstances that put them at risk.

Describing the sanctions as "groundless," he suggested that Australia and New Zealand were portraying humanitarian aid as a crime. "They have once again made themselves look bad," Kadyrov wrote on his Telegram channel, adding that his side treats sanctions like "old things in the attic"—to be laughed at and forgotten. He emphasized maintaining optimism and moving forward despite obstacles, interpreting the sanctions as proof of the foundation’s valuable work.

As previously reported by Caucasus Watch, the U.S., the EU, and Japan had also sanctioned Kadyrov family members and Chechen leadership. In June 2024, the EU imposed sanctions against Aimani Kadyrova, which Ramzan Kadyrov attributed to the foundation’s support for fighters in the war. He claimed that Western sanctions only reaffirmed the foundation’s contributions to supporting the state.