24 teenagers from occupied Kherson Oblast just completed training in drone operations, tactical combat, and elements of cyber warfare—at a Russian military camp disguised as an educational trip.
The program was called "Pride of the Nation. The Path of Development." The real purpose, according to Ukraine's Center for National Resistance (CNR), was building a loyal military reserve from Ukrainian children forcibly integrated into Russia's war machine.
Families who refused to participate faced pressure from Russian occupation authorities. This included warnings that welfare payments, employment, and their children’s school records could be affected.
Drones in children's hands: Russia's expansion of drone training programs
At the Avangard "defense-sports" camp near Volgograd, the teenagers learned to operate unmanned aerial vehicles—the same technology now central to the Russo-Ukrainian War.
Russia's militarization of Ukrainian youths at Avangard is part of a larger process. Russia has purchased 18,000 training drones for 500 schools and aims to train one million drone specialists by 2030.
According to UK Defence Intelligence, Russia now runs drone courses in over 500 schools and 30 colleges, with more than 2,500 teachers trained to deliver them.
Quotas and coercion leave no choice for families
CNR identified occupation governor Vladimir Saldo as central to the system. His administration compiles lists of children, coordinates logistics, and maintains direct contact with Russian military-patriotic centers.
Saldo publicly promotes the trips as cultural and educational initiatives. Behind the scenes, his apparatus enforces participation through pressure on schools and families.
Administrators faced pressure from above; parents faced something worse.
"Participation was presented as a 'mandatory recommendation,'" the CNR reported. Some families received direct warnings that refusing would lead to "possible problems with payments, social assistance, and educational evaluations."
The scale is significant. Ukraine's Ombudsman documented that during summer 2024 alone, over 3,300 children from occupied Kherson were sent to camps across Russia—including paramilitary training in Vologda. The 24 teenagers sent to Avangard represent the third documented group from Saldo's administration since July 2024.
Stalingrad's shadow: Russia's cult of WWII and brainwashing
Beyond combat skills, the program immersed children in ideological indoctrination. Russian authorities made the 24 Kherson teenagers visit Mamayev Kurgan, a massive memorial complex in Volgograd commemorating the Battle of Stalingrad.
The decision is deliberate. For the Kremlin, Stalingrad represents the ultimate patriotic sacrifice, the moment Soviet forces turned the tide against Nazi Germany. By bringing Ukrainian children to this site, Russian authorities attempt to graft them onto a Russian national mythology—erasing their Ukrainian identity while preparing them for future military service.
“Children are deliberately being taught to perceive war as normal,” CNR analysts wrote. Combat training, coupled with Russian “patriotic” rituals, channels occupied children toward Russian military service.
From classroom to combat: Russia's militarization pipeline
Ukraine's government has documented the full arc of this system. Children deported from Donetsk orphanages in 2022 now appear in Russian military uniforms and may now be fighting in Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, and Donetsk Oblasts.
The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Vladimir Putin and children's rights commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova in March 2023 for illegal child deportation. Since then, the system has expanded.
Nearly 20,000 Ukrainian children have been deported since 2022, according to Ukraine's Children of War portal. Fewer than 1,800 have returned. The 24 teenagers sent to Volgograd this month join thousands of Ukrainian children being systematically transformed into Putin's foot soldiers.
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