Russia’s schools and universities are shamelessly kowtowing to Putin

Anyone wanting an insight into the strange atmosphere springing up almost overnight in Russia’s institutions could do a lot worse than consider campaigns held in Russian schools and kindergartens over the past week.

There have been numerous photographs published online of infants waving Russian flags and arranging themselves in Z-formation, ‘Z’ being the current war-symbol of choice in Russia. Celebrations of the 2014 annexation of Crimea, and poetry-reading sessions against ‘attempts to ban Russian culture abroad’, have also been held.

In a report by Meduza – the Kremlin-sceptical online news service branded a ‘foreign agent’ by the Russian ministry of justice – we see, amidst nationwide footage of kids dressed as soldiers and holding up the letter ‘Z’, a kindergarten in Saratov region. Here children, barely knee high wear military clothing, their teachers bearing Russian flags behind them. ‘We support the decision of our president, we support our soldiers, we are proud of Russia and our army,’ they chant together.