Russia’s Education Minister, Sergey Kravstov, has stated that military training will return to Russian schools next September, according to the latest update by the UK’s Ministry of Defence.
The programme is supported by Russia’s Ministry of Defence, which states that no less than 140 hours per academic year should be devoted to this training.
“This reprises a Soviet-era programme where students had mandatory military training, a programme which ended in 1993. This training included contingencies for a chemical or nuclear attack, first aid and experience handling and firing Kalashnikov rifles,” the UK MoD said.
“Russian officials attempted to revive this training in 2014 following Russia’s invasion of Crimea. It was hoped that the initiative would improve the quality of conscripts. Eight years later, little has changed, and the quality of Russian conscripts remains poor, with low morale and limited training.”
It adds that this training likely intends to prepare students with military skills as they approach conscription age and to increase the take-up for mobilisation drives. The initiative is also likely to be part of “a wider project to instil an ideology of patriotism and trust in public institutions in the Russian population,” the MoD added.
In Other Developments:
KHERSON RETREAT
* “There it is just hell – there are extremely fierce battles there every day,” Zelenskiy said of the Donetsk region in a video address. “But our units are defending bravely – they are withstanding the terrible pressure of the invaders, preserving our defence lines.”
* Britain said Russia’s withdrawal from Kherson, the only regional capital in Ukraine that it had captured since invading in February, was another humiliation for its army but Moscow continued to pose a threat.
* Kherson residents held flowers and kissed Ukrainian soldiers who were moving into the right bank of the Dnipro River after Russia’s stunning retreat.
Russian conscripted men at a recruiting office during Russia’s partial military mobilization in Moscow, Russia. EPA-EFE/YURI KOCHETKOV
DIPLOMACY, ECONOMY, OTHER
* Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Iranian counterpart, Ebrahim Raisi, emphasised “further enhancing cooperation in the political, trade and economic fields, including the transport and logistics sector” during a phone call, the Kremlin said.
* Ukraine will decide the timing and contents of any negotiation framework with Russia, according to a readout of U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s meeting with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba in Phnom Penh.
* Russia said there was no agreement yet to extend a deal allowing Ukraine to export grain via the Black Sea, repeating its insistence on unhindered access to world markets for its own food and fertiliser exports.
* Turkey is committed to seeking a peace dialogue between Russia and Ukraine, Turkish media cited President Tayyip Erdogan as saying, as he accused the United States and other Western countries of provoking Moscow.
* Russia restated its insistence on unhindered access to world markets for its food and fertiliser exports after what it called a “thorough exchange of views” with U.N. officials the day before in Geneva.
* Russian fertilizer producer Uralchem-Uralkali has agreed with the Netherlands, Estonia and Belgium to supply cargoes of fertilizers stranded in those countries to Africa, TASS news agency reported.
* Renowned graffiti artist Banksy unveiled a work in the Ukrainian town of Borodyanka, which had been occupied by Russia until April and heavily damaged by fighting in the early days of Moscow’s invasion of its neighbour.
