Warriors for the Russian regime. How Russia militarises Ukrainian children from the temporarily occupied territories
Author: Tetyana Lychko, documentarian
The Russian Federation continues its targeted policy of militarising children and youth, preparing new generations to participate in the wars waged by Russia. The justification of armed aggressions is disguised by Russian propaganda narratives about “restoring historical justice”, “readiness to defend one’s homeland”, etc. This is ingrained in people’s minds from childhood. The Russian Federation places a special emphasis on Ukrainian children from the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine (hereinafter referred to as the TOT), who found themselves under its full control and isolated from Ukrainian education. First of all, children from the TOT are forced to understand that they belong to Russia, perceive Russian culture as their own, and identify the Russian Federation as their homeland, which, of course, should be loved and protected.
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Who is responsible?
A number of high-ranking officials of the Russian government and their subordinate ministries are responsible for the implementation of the state policy aimed at militarising children and youth. These include, in particular, the Ministry of Education of Russia (headed by S.S. Kravtsov), the Ministry of Higher Education and Science of Russia (headed by V.M. Falkov), the Federal Agency for Youth Affairs (headed by K.D. Razuvaeva), and the Ministry of Defence of Russia (headed by S.K. Shoigu).
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All ministries are accountable to and controlled by the President of Russia, Vladimir V. Putin. Personally, Putin issued an order of 20.09.2022 No. Pr-1678 to all the above ministries, as well as to the Federal Security Service of Russia, the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia, the Federal Service of the National Guard Troops of the Russian Federation (Rosgvardia), the Ministry of Emergencies of Russia, the Voluntary Society for Assistance to the Army, Aviation and Navy of Russia (DOSAAF of Russia) on the establishment of centres for military sports training and patriotic education of youth on the basis of public organisations “Russian Union of Martial Arts”.
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In pursuance of this, an autonomous non-profit organisation of additional professional education, the CENTRE FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF MILITARY AND SPORTS TRAINING AND PATRIOTIC EDUCATION OF YOUTH, was established and officially registered in the register of legal entities of the Russian Federation on 01.12.2022.
The founders are:
- All-Russian Union of Public Associations “Russian Union of Martial Arts”;
- Federal State Budgetary Institution “Russian Centre for Civil and Patriotic Education of Children and Youth”;
- Federal State Autonomous Educational Institution of Higher Education “State University of Education”.
- The public name of the organisation was shortened and a name that speaks for itself was added − Centre for Military and Sports Training of Youth “VOIN” (Russian for “Warrior”).
In February 2024, Igor V. Kazarezov was appointed Director of the “VOIN” Centre. I. Kazarezov is a former military officer, Deputy Ataman of the All-Russian Cossack Society; he actively participated in the creation of cadet corps and youth patriotic organisations in Russia; in 2005-2014 he served as Director of the Department for Cossacks and Cadet Educational Institutions of Rostov Region; he was awarded a personalised Cossack sword (shashka) “For Loyalty and Diligence” by Russian President Vladimir Putin).
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What is the “VOIN” Centre?
The “VOIN” Centre started its work by opening 12 branches in the Russian Federation and conducting the first training for children in May 2023. In 2023, it has already trained nearly 17,000 people. By the end of 2024, according to the head of the centre, the training will cover at least 30,000 people. The Russian authorities do not hide the military purpose of the centre. The official website of the “VOIN” Centre states that it was created to raise a new generation of patriots and defenders of Russia, and that one of the organisation’s priorities is to prepare young people for military service in the Russian Armed Forces. This goal is being achieved in the 22 branches of the “VOIN” Centre that have already been opened, in particular, the following branches are targeting Ukrainian children in the TOT: in Kherson region (Genichesk), Zaporizhzhia region (Berdiansk), Luhansk region (Luhansk), Donetsk region (Donetsk and Mariupol).
The centre’s director, Igor Kazarezov, points out:
“We have a task to open branches in all regions of Russia in a few years. That is why we plan to create new branches every year.”
It is also planned that each branch of the “VOIN” Centre will have its own training grounds for testing various equipment, including unmanned aerial vehicles, practicing engineering support tasks, and operations in various combat situations.
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Who teaches children and what do they learn?
Children aged 14-17 and young people under 35 are trained in the following areas: the basics of Russian national security, firearms training, tactical training, engineering training, organisation of communication, basics of UAV piloting, tactical medicine, and tactical sports games.
The children are taught by instructors, nearly half of whom are Russian military personnel, participants of the so-called special military operation, including those who have received Russian state awards for “military merit”.
For children from the TOT, two forms of the so-called training are provided by the “VOIN” Centre: taking them to the territory of the Russian Federation to defence and sports camps and training in the TOT at educational institutions and summer camps.
For example, in May this year, children from the TOT of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions, as well as the Belgorod region of the Russian Federation, were taken to the territory of the Russian Federation in Volgograd for a 21-day shift “Time of Heroes”. The director of the “VOIN” Centre says that one of the goals of attacting children from these territories is “to instil in these children a love for Russia, its culture, traditions and values”, which is actually their russification and militarisation, given the content of the training.
The programme of the shift includes patriotic activities, studying the history of Russia as the history of their homeland, meetings with Russian military personnel, participants of the so-called special military operation, as well as a military-historical reenactment “For Stalingrad” and a military tactical game “Zarnitsa 2.0” (Russian for “Summer Lightning”).
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During this training, the conditions in which children live are far from resembling the summer recreation camps to which they are being recruited to participate. Children live in field tents, are required to wear military uniforms, and strictly follow the daily routine (from 07:00 to 23:00), which includes flying the Russian flag and singing the Russian anthem. Moreover, children’s comments on social media testify to the “terrible attitude” and inadequate medical care in the aforementioned camp in Volgograd during the “Time of Heroes” shift. Representatives of the Russian media also note that the “Avangard” camp in Volgograd is very different from other children’s health camps, saying that “everything here is serious − real dugouts, a parade ground, a minefield, obstacle courses, shooting galleries, machine guns, parachutes and other military paraphernalia”.
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Over the summer holidays, about 650 children from the TOT are planned to be taken only to this particular camp.
The offices of the “VOIN” Centre are also actively working directly on the TOT to militarise and russify Ukrainian children. Thus, in May this year, the first military field training and a course on the basics of medical tactical training and military training of the “VOIN” Centre for 70 students took place at the Genichesk Construction College (the TOT of the Kherson region). For the operation of this branch of the military centre, in particular, equipment for training in drone control and laser tag kits were purchased.
What does this violate?
The activities of the “VOIN” Centre are aimed, in particular, at militarising Ukrainian children from the TOT and promoting military service in the armed forces of the Russian Federation, which is a gross violation of international law. Namely:
- Article 51 of the Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War: “no pressure or propaganda which aims at securing voluntary enlistment is permitted “. Whereas, after studying at the “VOIN” Centre, children from the TOT are “ready to connect their lives with the military”.
- Article 31 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child: “the child has the right to rest and leisure and to participate in cultural life”. It should be noted that play and leisure cannot be imposed on the child, and participation in cultural life is important for the formation of one’s own identity.
- Article 8 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which enshrines the principle of the primacy of the rights and legitimate interests of the child − “the child has the right to preserve his or her identity, including nationality”.
- Articles 28-29 of the Convention enshrine the child’s right to education, including non-formal education, which should be subject to specific criteria called “educational goals”.
- (b) The development of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, and for the principles enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations;
- (c) The development of respect for the child’s parents, his or her own cultural identity, language and values, for the national values of the country in which the child is living, the country from which he or she may originate, and for civilizations different from his or her own;
- (d) The preparation of the child for responsible life in a free society, in the spirit of understanding, peace, tolerance, equality of sexes, and friendship among all peoples, ethnic, national and religious groups and persons of indigenous origin.
According to the authors, drawing the attention of the international community to these gross violations and bringing the perpetrators to justice can stop the spread of militarisation and russification of Ukrainian children from the TOT, which is directly carried out by the “VOIN” Centre.
This article was prepared by the Centre for Civic Education “Almenda” as part of the project “Childhood Unchained: Standing Against Occupation`s Impact”. The project is implemented with the financial support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic as part of the Transition Promotion Programme. The views expressed in this report are those of the authors and do not reflect the official position of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic
