The occupiers have approved a textbook on the history of Ukraine’s occupied territories

The Russian Ministry of Education has added the textbook "History of Our Region: Donbas and Novorossiya" to the federal list for students in grades 5–7. This means that the textbook has been officially approved for use in the Russian education system.

NEXTA reportsthis, citing official sources from the occupying authorities.

The course is primarily intended for schools in the territories of the Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson regions that are temporarily occupied by Russia. Starting September 1, it is planned to make the textbook mandatory there.

The textbook presents the history of Ukrainian regions through the lens of Russian imperial and propaganda narratives, according to the report.

Human rights activists view this educational policy as part of the Russification of the occupied territories and an attempt to supplant Ukrainian identity among children.

Thus, the Russian occupying authorities are using not only administrative and coercive mechanisms but also the education system to impose their own version of the history of Ukrainian territories on children.

Recently, the occupying authorities planned to make changes to the school curriculum and the organization of the educational process in the temporarily occupied territories. Starting September 1, schools in the temporarily occupied territories will introduce a subject called “Spiritual and Moral Culture of the Russian Federation.”

In addition, in the temporarily occupied Kherson region, authorities announced the creation ofa so-called“School for Foster Parents,” which is intended to prepare Russian citizens to become legal guardians of children. 

As a reminder, the UN International Commission has concluded that Russia’s removal of Ukrainian children from the temporarily occupied territories constitutes a crime against humanity. Furthermore, the commission considers the delay in their return to Ukraine to be a war crime. 

Андрій Колісніченко