Sayana Fedotova, the daughter of the head of the Buryat branch of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation, Vyacheslav Markhaev, wrote about the incident on social media; the project “People of Baikal” drew attention to her post.
On September 13, the annual all-Russian race “Cross of the Nation” took place in the capital of Buryatia. This year, a mobilization point was set up at the venue.
When the race for students in grades 5–8 ended, a person in uniform came onto the stage. According to Fedotova, he began praising the schoolchildren and saying: “We need you, we are fighting, come join us, we can’t manage without you”.
Fedotova wrote that she left the event “literally in tears” because she is raising children herself. She added: “I love my country. It is rich in people first and foremost. I believe that all people have the right to life. I have always taught my children this. Why can’t people live in peace?”
In the same message, Fedotova reminded readers that Vyacheslav Markhaev had directly called on the authorities to end the fighting in Ukraine. At the end of August, Buryat Communist Party member Bair Tsyrenov launched campaign videos on television with the question: “When will the special military operation end?”
Earlier, the State Duma called for Russian children to be prepared for war with NATO and the EU immediately after primary school. The first deputy chairman of the committee on CIS affairs, Viktor Vodolatsky, said that a military conflict could begin in 2030, so the army needs to be replenished by the younger generation, and basic military training should be made universal.
Soviet-era basic military training lessons were restored in Russian schools after the invasion of Ukraine. Students in grades 10–11 are taught the basics of drill, the rules for providing first aid during wartime, coordinated actions in groups, sheltering during air attacks, and other methods of protection; in addition, schoolchildren learn how to handle hand grenades. In addition, the military-patriotic game “Zarnitsa 2.0” is regularly held in schools: children are taught how to escape from captivity, storm positions, navigate terrain in combat conditions, operate combat drones, and practice propaganda work techniques, and teams accept children from the age of seven.
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