In Donetsk region, suspicions announced against those involved in the militarisation of children in occupied territories
Over six years, children in the temporarily occupied territories of Donetsk region were systematically prepared for war. Through propaganda, pseudo-patriotic events, and promises of “social benefits” and career prospects, minors were deliberately drawn into the military system of the occupying state.
This was reported by the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine.
Between 2019 and 2025, approximately 6,000 children aged 6 to 18 were involved in the “Yunarmiya” movement. Cases have been documented in which, upon reaching adulthood, participants joined the Russian Armed Forces and took part in combat operations against Ukraine.
Juvenile prosecutors from the Office of the Prosecutor General have announced suspicions against eight Ukrainian citizens who, as part of an organised group, ensured the functioning of this system in the temporarily occupied territories.
“Militarisation of children is part of Russia’s deliberate policy to eradicate Ukrainian identity. Therefore, those involved in promoting military service in the occupying state’s army will bear criminal responsibility under the law,” said Yanina Tertychna, Head of the Department for the Protection of Children’s Interests and Combating Domestic Violence at the Prosecutor General’s Office.
The “Yunarmiya” movement was created in 2016 on the initiative of the then Russian Minister of Defence and was later extended to the temporarily occupied territories of Crimea, Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson regions. Under the guise of “patriotic education,” children were taught weapons handling, participated in tactical exercises, military marches, and swore allegiance to Russia.
According to Russia’s Strategy for Patriotic Education, at least 10% of new recruits to the Russian Armed Forces each year are expected to come from “Yunarmiya” participants.
In 2022, the Russian Minister of Defence issued Order No. 132, mandating the involvement of “Yunarmiya” members in combat operations in Ukraine to replenish Russian army losses.
The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, in a report dated 1 March 2024, emphasised the need to end the politicisation and militarisation of children in occupied Ukrainian territories.
It is recalled that in Russia, nearly 100,000 children study in family-based forms of the movement, according to the Russian Ministry of Education at the start of the current academic year.
