Russia has developed a new document it formally labels as “methodological guidelines for preventing extremism among children and youth.” In reality, it is a detailed tool of systemic ideological indoctrination designed to make Ukrainian children obedient and compliant with the occupying authorities.

🔹 The guidelines instruct teachers and officials in occupied territories to monitor teenagers who follow events in Ukraine, read international media, or post anti-Putin comments on social networks. Children who simply want to know the truth are described almost explicitly as “dangerous” and in need of “individual prevention.” Under the guise of “safety,” Russia replaces facts with myths, Soviet-era clichés, and a distorted version of history.

🔹 The manual includes entire sections advising educators to restrict access to historical materials about World War II and instead promote the mythologized “Great Patriotic War.” According to the authors, this warped narrative should “explain” Russia’s current aggression and foster loyalty to the occupying regime.

🔹 One of the most telling sections labels residents of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions as “full-fledged Ukrainian nationalists” simply because they have resisted since 2014. In the occupiers’ logic, any expression of Ukrainian identity is a threat that must be “neutralized” through educational and punitive measures.

🔹 The document outlines a broad concept of so-called “extremism prevention,” which includes support for the Armed Forces of Ukraine, interest in Ukrainian news, or any connection to the child’s homeland—in other words, ordinary aspects of life for a Ukrainian child. It also encourages monitoring social media, checking phones, compiling “social passports,” and tracking any activity that does not align with Russia’s vision of “proper behavior.”

🔹 History is weaponized as well. For example, the Cyrillo-Methodian Brotherhood—a mid-19th-century cultural and educational movement—is described as a “stage in the development of Ukrainian nationalism” and recommended for study as a supposed threat to be handled by “specialists in countering terrorism.” Such interpretations turn historical facts into instruments of intimidation.

🔹 A separate part of the manual is devoted to a familiar element of Russian propaganda: the false narrative about “Azov” and “neo-Nazism.” Volunteers who became symbols of Ukrainian resistance are labeled “racist” and “neo-Nazi,” despite the fact that no country in the world has ever recognized Azov as a neo-Nazi organization. The goal is clear: to manufacture an enemy image that can be endlessly demonized to justify the occupation.

All of this reveals a single truth: Russia has built a comprehensive system of ideological pressure aimed at erasing Ukrainian identity precisely where children are most vulnerable—schools, boarding institutions, youth groups. These actions are a blatant violation of international law, including the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and must receive a firm legal assessment at the international level.

Save Ukraine works every day to protect children whom Russia tries to isolate, intimidate, or strip of their identity. Our team helps them escape occupation, rebuild their lives, and return to a future free of fear and humiliation.

We continue this work despite all risks—and we urgently need your support. Donate here

You can read the full text of the manual at the link provided Методические_рекомендации_по_профилактике_распространения_идеологии.