They train like real soldiers. They learn to shoot, make tourniquets and even throw grenades, which is, according to one of the students, the most difficult. In the calls ‘Youth armies’, Russian teenagers prepare for combat. Are patriotic military clubs in which, teachers say, they teach the youngest to respect Russian customs and values.

On the occupied Crimean peninsula, They teach them how to assemble a rifle in just a few seconds and follow orders with absolute discipline. Also receive a visit from soldiers who fight on the front and decorate their desks with their photos. At that table they seat the best in the class. “It’s great that such incredible people have passed through our school,” says one of the students.

Not only have the classes changed. Also the books. The History ones have been reprinted to incorporate concepts such as “special military operation“, the way Russia refers to the war in Ukraine, or “denazification”, the argument with which Moscow justifies the invasion. Nor are the nursery schools. Children of 4 or 5 years old use the yard where they previously played to hold military parades. In Ukraine, there is concern about the indoctrination of children in areas occupied by Russian forces.