Almenda: Russia has enrolled about 49,000 occupied-territory children in Yunarmiya youth-military movement
Ukraine's civic-education center Almenda told a conference at the Czech parliament that Russia has involved roughly 49,000 children from temporarily occupied Ukrainian territories — about 36,000 of them from Crimea — in the Yunarmiya military-patriotic movement. Almenda's head, Mariia Sulialina, also reported that the parallel "Movement of the First" in Crimea has grown from 12,000 participants in 2023 to 185,000 now, and described a broader system that reaches down into preschool education.
Key points
- Russia has involved about 49,000 children from temporarily occupied Ukrainian territories in the Yunarmiya military-patriotic movement.
- Of those, roughly 36,000 are children from Crimea.
- Participants in Russia's "Movement of the First" in Crimea grew from 12,000 in 2023 to 185,000.
- Figures were presented by Mariia Sulialina, head of the Ukrainian civic-education center Almenda.
- Sulialina spoke at the conference "Crimea in Focus: Human Rights, International Law and European Security," held in the parliament of the Czech Republic.
- According to Almenda, militarization extends to preschool education: children wear military uniforms, take part in military-patriotic events, and meet Russian servicemembers who participated in the so-called "SVO."
Why it matters
The figures document the systematic militarization of children in Russian-occupied territories, which international human-rights frameworks treat as a serious violation against minors. The scale of growth in the "Movement of the First" — from 12,000 to 185,000 in roughly two years — points to rapid, state-organized expansion rather than voluntary participation. Presenting the data at the Czech parliament raises the question of international accountability mechanisms for these policies.
What happened
At the conference "Crimea in Focus: Human Rights, International Law and European Security," held in the parliament of the Czech Republic, Mariia Sulialina, head of Ukraine's civic-education center Almenda, presented figures on the militarization of children in Russian-occupied territories. She said Russia has involved approximately 49,000 children from those territories in the Yunarmiya military-patriotic movement, of whom around 36,000 are from Crimea. She also reported that the "Movement of the First" in Crimea has expanded from 12,000 participants in 2023 to 185,000 now. According to Almenda, the system of militarization reaches down to preschool age, with children made to wear military uniforms, attend military-patriotic events, and meet Russian servicemembers who took part in the so-called "SVO." The conference also addressed political persecution, illegal detention of civilians, and violations of the rights of indigenous peoples of Crimea.
Background
Almenda is a Ukrainian civic-military center that monitors rights violations in occupied territories. Yunarmiya is a Russian state-backed youth movement with an explicitly military orientation, while the "Movement of the First" is its broader civic counterpart. The Czech-Parliament conference covered political persecution, illegal civilian detention, indigenous-peoples' rights in Crimea, and accountability mechanisms.