The Kremlin is recruiting young people from the temporarily occupied territories into the Russian Armed Forces, promising them money and an education
Russian authorities are attempting to recruit young residents of the temporarily occupied territories into the Russian Armed Forces by using propaganda about high pay, social benefits, and the opportunity to continue their education while serving.
According to the Center for Counter-Propaganda, Russian propaganda outlets are actively spreading a story about a young man from Donetsk who is allegedly attending a university while simultaneously serving in the military under a contract.
Such materials place particular emphasis on the fact that a special contract format is supposedly available for students. In this way, Russian propaganda is attempting to convince other young people to join the Russian Armed Forces.
In these propaganda materials, service in the Russian army is portrayed as an opportunity to earn money, gain status, and receive social benefits. At the same time, the real risks of participating in the war and the potential consequences for service members are downplayed.
The Center for Counter-Disinformation emphasizes that in this way, Russian propaganda romanticizes military service and creates a distorted perception of war among young people.
Against the backdrop of significant losses suffered by the Russian army, the Kremlin is interested in constantly recruiting new soldiers. Therefore, the propaganda campaign is specifically targeted at young people from the temporarily occupied territories.
“The Kremlin is attempting not only to impose a Russian identity on residents of the temporarily occupied territories but also to use this population as a resource to continue the war,” the Center for Countering Disinformation concluded.
This was reported by the Center for Countering Disinformation.
Earlier, the German television channel ZDF published an investigation claiming that Russia had established a large-scale scheme to recruit foreigners to participate in the war against Ukraine.
Russia continues to recruit foreigners into its army to participate in the war against Ukraine. In particular, Peru’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported the deaths of 11 Peruvian citizens who had joined Russian forces.
