According to a curriculum released Monday by the education ministry, Russian teens will study how to operate and counter military drones in the coming school year.
Moscow said last November that it would reintroduce Soviet-style military training for youngsters beginning in 2023, as it continues its almost 18-month war in Ukraine.
The drone course, which will be available to students aged 15 to 17, comes at a time when Russian territory is being attacked almost daily by Ukrainian drone attacks, and their use is becoming increasingly important in the conflict.
Students will obtain “an understanding of the ways in which unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) can be used in combat,” according to the education ministry’s website.
They will also “perform practical tasks on drone piloting” as well as “learn the algorithm to counter enemy drones”.
“The introduction of such a program in schools will make it possible to systematically prepare our citizens for a possible confrontation with the enemy,” lawmaker Sergei Mironov said in November 2022 as he advocated for the reintroduction of the training.
The revised military program also includes a module dedicated to Kalashnikov assault rifles, hand grenades and shooting.
Since Moscow launched full-scale hostilities against Ukraine on February 24, 2022, Russian authorities have led a sweeping campaign to boost patriotism at school.
Schools have been ordered to play the national anthem and hoist the flag at the start of each week.
The Kremlin also introduced classes — dubbed “important conversations” — that teach World War II revisionism, Russian values and Moscow’s official narrative about its troops “protecting” compatriots in Ukraine.