14-year-old Russian student David learned something new this month: shooting accurately with a Kalashnikov is harder than what with a pistol.
Along with his classmates, he tested these weapons as part of basic military training–a section of the school curriculum that had been abolished in the last years of the Soviet Union, but reinstated after the beginning of of Russian invasion of Ukraine.
In the southern Russian city of Vladikavkaz, teenage boys in camouflage uniforms this month took part in gun drills and first aid exercises under the supervision of their teachers.
"It's easier to shoot a pistol. And it's harder to aim with an automatic weapon,'' says David, a skinny boy with black hair and glasses.
The same boy explains that gun training will "make it easier" his life in the future. Military service is compulsory for young Russians.
Sergei Menyailo, a retired vice admiral who is now the governor of North Ossetia, referred to the war with Ukraine by speaking to young people and telling them that education would help them “carry out their military duty within a group”. if they need to fight one day.
The Ministry of Education issued a decree in late 2022 introducing basic military training into the school curriculum under a module called "basic life safety principles".< /p>
Critics of this decision argue that it is part of the growing militarization of Russian society since the start of the war.
For his part, Boris Kademirov, head of a local volunteer organization that supports the armed forces, said the training provides skills every soldier needs.
"Everyone should be able to save lives, handle weapons and be in good physical condition," he told Reuters.
Source: APE-MPE-Reuters
