Ukrainian girl from occupied territory sent to Russian military camp: taught to lay mines and dig trenches

In summer 2024, then-17-year-old Sonia (name changed), who lived in the occupied part of Kherson Oblast, Ukraine, was deceived and taken to a military camp in Russia. She was told that with a certificate from the training there, she could join the Russian army.

Source: the Guardian

Details: Sonia later managed to escape to Ukrainian-controlled territory. However, her younger brother remained under occupation and now wants to become a Russian soldier.

Sonia had spent over three years living under Russian occupation in Kherson Oblast. Her family was forced to accept Russian passports, and she studied according to the Russian curriculum and learned the Russian language.

According to Sonia, life under forced assimilation was frightening. In summer 2024, her foster mother agreed that the girl needed a break.

The school offered to send Sonia to a camp in occupied Crimea. But on her way, she found out she was actually being taken to southwestern Russia – to Volgograd. That is how she ended up in the Avangard military camp, which has branches across Russia.

Sonia says that at the camp they were trained to dig trenches, rig them with tripwires and mines, load machine guns and evacuate the wounded.

Quote: “The instructors told me that with the certificate given after the training, you can join the Russian army, so I understood it wasn’t just play.”

Details: As her 18th birthday approached, she began to fear that she might be forced to enlist in the Russian armed forces.

Sonia’s younger brother was also sent to the Avangard camp. She said he fell victim to ideological brainwashing.

Quote: “After being subjected to their propaganda, he took Russia’s side. He says he will join the Russian army. He talks about it with his friends.”

More details: After the camp, Sonia returned to her foster family in the occupied part of Kherson Oblast. She was afraid she would be forced to return to the camp. In early summer, the organisation Save Ukraine helped her reach Ukrainian-controlled territory. Her brother, however, remained under occupation.

Background: In 2024, the Russians took children from occupied Bilovodsk in Luhansk Oblast to a military camp in Russia’s Novosibirsk Oblast. In the tent camp, which the Russians call the Young Army camp, children aged 11 to 17 were forcibly trained in military skills.