The new school program for Russian secondary education, which should start on September 1 this year, will guarantee, among other things, the British military secret services, which say they have had detailed access to the plans announced in November by the Russian ministry of Education – “training with assault weapons and AK series hand grenades, basic military exercises, use of personal protective equipment and military salutes”.
It is, say the British, an “evocation of the Soviet Union” and a return to a school program that had ended in 1993. The military module is similar to the one already announced for higher education students. In November, Russia’s education minister had assured that Russian students would resume military training in schools from September 2023. in the event of a chemical or nuclear attack.
Pentagon pressed?
The website Politics warranty yes. The news reports, citing sources on anonymity, that a “contingent of military officials is discreetly pressuring the Pentagon to approve the deployment of F-16 fighters to Ukraine.”
The aim is to more effectively stop Russian missile and drone attacks now that about 100 German-made Leopard 2 and North American-made Abrams heavy tanks have been sent along with the Bradley and Promised Marder and the Patriot.
If, as the quoted sources say, Ukraine prepares for a new offensive in the spring to reclaim territory, the deployment of F-16 fighters will be “essential”, in addition to another 300 to 400 tanks.
Mykhailo Podolyak, Zelensky’s adviser, assured on Saturday that there were talks between Western allies to speed up the delivery of long-range missiles and military aircraft, but he also underlined that some of Ukraine’s Western partners maintained a “conservative” stance on the supply of these weapons, “for fear of changes in international architecture”.
don’t close the doors
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Sunday that he wanted to keep the line of communication open with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Speaking to the German newspaper Tagesspiegel in Berlin, Scholz said he would “get back on the phone with Putin because it is necessary [falar]with each other”.
Talks so far, the German chancellor assures, are not in a “rude tone”, but Putin maintains the “unacceptable” position of forcibly incorporating parts of Ukraine into Russia.
Scholz added that these talks also discuss specific issues, such as the export of Ukrainian grains or the safety of the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant, although they “always return to the central issue” of the war and how to get out of the current situation. For Scholz, it is up to Putin to withdraw troops from Ukraine and end a “terribly absurd” war that has already destroyed “hundreds of thousands of lives”.
Source: DN
