Video: Putin’s Youth Camps Teach Children Combat Skills With AK-47s, Grenades

Russian children as young as eight have been filmed learning to throw grenades and handle rifles during a military-style summer camp in the Rostov region, near the Ukrainian border. The camp, overseen by veterans of Russia’s war in Ukraine, is part of a growing push to prepare the next generation for military service under Vladimir Putin’s rule.

Footage shows boys and girls dressed in camouflage uniforms crawling through sand and shallow water while clutching weapons. About 83 children between the ages of 8 and 17 took part in last week’s drills, which included a “route march” along the River Don. Participants described firing dummy shots, throwing grenades, and being tested to their limits.

“I nearly died!” one teenage girl joked, while her friend said they repeated the march three times. Eight-year-old Ivan Glushchenko said throwing grenades had been his favorite part of the training. Another boy, David, said the camp had shown him “how strong \[his] willpower is.”

Instructors leading the program include soldiers wounded in Ukraine. One of them, Alexander Shopin, who is awaiting surgery, brought his own daughter to participate. “I like it – to pass my experience to the children. You can see how a family is forged out of them,” he said, adding that his daughter enjoyed being part of a team despite the challenges.

The camp is billed as a patriotic initiative to steer children away from “back alleyways” and into military-style discipline. Instructor Vladimir Yanenko said such training was vital, while one of the older boys, Anton, declared his wish to join the army: “To serve my country and be loyal to my cause until the very end.”

The program reflects the Kremlin’s wider efforts to instill nationalism in young Russians and prepare them for eventual service.

Video of the camp has sparked international concern as evidence of the militarization of children in Russia.

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