Russia Mandates Military Training for Students Aged 13

The Ministry of Education of the Russian Federation has overhauled the national school curriculum to integrate basic military training into mandatory civics courses for students as young as 13. The new course, titled Fundamentals of Security and Defense of the Motherland, allocates half of its weekly lessons to military instruction, including the use of hand grenades, anti-tank weapons, machine guns, and emergency field medicine.

This initiative serves as part of a broader state strategy to create a pipeline of recruits for the war in Ukraine. To support this goal, the federal government allocated 70 billion rubles toward patriotic education and expanded the Zarnitsa youth military games. The state is also deploying battlefield veterans into schools and kindergartens to promote patriotism and educate children based on their military experiences.

Beyond the domestic curriculum, the Russian government has introduced new history textbooks in occupied territories of Ukraine. These materials are designed to teach students that these regions have always been Russian.