Russia accused of running over 200 camps to indoctrinate Ukrainian children

Tuesday 16 September 2025 - 13:30

By: Sahili Aya

Russia accused of running over 200 camps to indoctrinate Ukrainian children

A new investigation has revealed that Russia operates an extensive network of more than 200 facilities aimed at re-educating and militarising Ukrainian children. The findings, released by the Humanitarian Research Lab at Yale School of Public Health, are supported by documents, satellite imagery, and open-source evidence, much of it from Russia’s own publications.

The camps, spread across Russia and occupied Ukrainian territories, include schools, military bases, religious institutions, and medical centers. Since the 2022 invasion, Ukrainian children have reportedly been taken to these sites and subjected to programmes involving patriotic indoctrination, military drills, paratrooper training, and even drone assembly workshops.

At least 130 of the facilities are linked to re-education campaigns promoting pro-Russian narratives, while 39 sites provide military-style training to children as young as eight, including weapons handling, grenade-throwing competitions, and tactical medicine courses.

Researchers say nearly a quarter of the facilities have expanded in recent years, with new camps under construction, raising concerns that Moscow plans to increase the scale of these operations. Experts argue the system amounts to the forced Russification of Ukrainian children, potentially violating international law, including the Geneva conventions and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

The report adds weight to allegations of war crimes already under investigation by the International Criminal Court against President Vladimir Putin and children’s rights commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova. Russia, however, maintains that the children were only relocated for safety reasons and denies any forced deportations.

Ukrainian officials, including Andriy Yermak, head of the presidential office, have called the evidence “irrefutable” and urged the international community to take urgent action.