SBU exposes scheme of militarization of teenagers in Crimea

The SBU exposed a scheme of militarization of adolescents in the temporarily occupied Crimea, where young men are being trained to participate in the war against Ukraine. The organizers of this activity were served suspicion notices in absentia for war crimes and propaganda of Russian aggression.

According to the Security Service of Ukraine, law enforcement officers have documented new facts of illegal activity of Oleksandr Dyachenko, who heads the structures created by the occupiers - the Union of Border Guards of Crimea and the Varyag Marine Training Center in the occupied Simferopol.

According to the investigation, these formations are presented as public initiatives, but are actually controlled by Russian special services and are used to train young people to serve in the military units of the aggressor state.

The key focus of their activities is the combat training of adolescents with the further prospect of their involvement in the Russian Navy. At the Varyaga bases, schoolchildren are taught diving, underwater navigation and sabotage operations in the marine environment.

The investigation found that these structures are regularly funded from Russia through so-called "presidential grants" aimed at strengthening the influence of the Kremlin regime on the peninsula. In early 2023 alone, they received almost 4.5 million rubles.

In addition, the occupation administration transferred a land plot near Simferopol to the organization to create a large-scale training complex. It is planned that at least 150 schoolchildren will be trained at this base at the same time.

The project includes the construction of shooting sectors, obstacle courses and special areas for underwater training. Instructors from the Russian military intelligence are involved in the training.

Also, within these structures, the ideology of "racism" is imposed on teenagers and justifies Russia's war against Ukraine. Dyachenko involved his subordinates, Daria Gorokhova and Volodymyr Graf, in these activities.

Upon completion of the training, participants are issued certificates that give them advantages when applying to military universities in Russia.

Based on the evidence collected, the SBU served Dyachenko, Gorokhova and Graf suspicion notices in absentia under articles related to justification of armed aggression and war crimes. Measures are currently being taken to bring them to justice.

An indictment against Deputy Minister of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation Andrey Omelchuk was also sent to court. He is suspected of involvement in the implementation of Russian educational policy in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine.

In addition, according to the investigation, children in the occupied territories of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions are involved in the activities of paramilitary movements, including Yunarmiya, Rukh Pervykh and Voin.

Анна Бальчінос