A new report claims that Russia is using teenagers to design, build, and test drones to be used in Russia’s war with Ukraine.
An investigation by The Insider, which is an exiled Russian news outlet, found that Russian officials use video game competitions to find talented students who are recruited by defense companies to design and test drones.
A Russian teenager told The Insider, “The kids are actively involved in modeling components of systems for various drones. I know of several people at least who were modeling UAV [unmanned aerial vehicle] components for major enterprises.”
According to The Insider, Russia’s recruitment of teenagers begins with a video game that involves “intelligence bears” defending themselves against bee swarms. The game also involves the use of drones to defend against the bee swarms. The outlet noted that hundreds of thousands of young Russians play the game and that students can receive extra credit points for doing well in the game.
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The Insider reported that young Russians who are good at playing the popular video game eventually are included in advanced competitions, such as Big Challenges, which searches for talented students on behalf of Russian companies linked to the Russian defense industry.
One Russian teenager who was a finalist in the competition told The Insider, “We were forbidden to say that it was needed for the war, and we invented civilian applications. It’s a children’s program … A project must always have a dual purpose, especially when you’re a school student. It’s an unwritten rule I’ve observed at every competition.”
According to The New York Post, Zvedzda, a television channel for the Russian army, recently shared a video of Russian teenagers helping build the country’s Geran-2 kamikaze drones at the Yelabuga production plant, which has been described as the “world’s biggest drone factory.”
The New York Post reported that the Zvedzda television channel claimed that Russians as young as 14 have been invited to study and work at the Yelabuga factory. The outlet noted that teenagers who work at the Yelabuga factory would have an opportunity to be employed at the drone manufacturing plant after they finish their college education.
