In Russia, students are being forced to sign contracts with the Ministry of Defense — ABC
In the Russian Federation, access to liberal arts and social sciences education is being significantly curtailed, while benefits for participants in the war against Ukraine are being expanded.
At the same time, the cost of higher education has skyrocketed in the aggressor country.
In addition to financial pressure, Russian students face harsh coercion into military service. In particular, Russia is seeing a new wave of student expulsions from military training centers.
The main reason for the pressure and expulsion is their principled refusal to sign a contract with the Russian Ministry of Defense after completing their studies.
The leadership of Russian universities is acting in concert with the repressive military apparatus.
“Universities and the Russian Ministry of Defense justify their demands by citing the terms of targeted training agreements that students signed upon admission to military centers,” the authors of the investigation note.
Thus, young people are effectively lured into a trap as early as the stage of university admission.
The occupiers’ military leadership uses legal levers as a tool for forced mobilization.
“Under these agreements, after receiving their diplomas, graduates are required to sign a contract for military service,” ABC.net emphasizes.
Any attempts to avoid being sent to the front are punished by immediate expulsion and the loss of the right to civilian education.
This is stated in an article by ABC.net, which analyzed current trends in the Russian education sector.
A list of students recruited by Russia for the war has been published
Recruitment of female students for the war has begun in Russia
As a reminder, the SBU is issuing warnings about enemy recruitment following the terrorist attack in Bucha.
The Kremlin has also implemented a hybrid scheme for covertly recruiting foreigners for the war.
