President Vladimir Putin’s Kremlin continues to bolster its efforts to indoctrinate Russia’s youth in service to a militarized state. These efforts are meant to ensure for years to come young Russians’ support for military service, harsh authoritarianism, and hostility toward the West. For Putin, Russia’s young men and women will “determine the future of the country,” providing “the most important guarantees” that Russia will stay on its current course. Yet Putin is wrong. In fact, most young Russians do not actively support his aggression against Ukraine or many of the assumptions and values that underpin it.
