Russia increasingly militarizes higher education - UK intelligence
Retired Admiral Sergey Avakyants (Russian media)
Russia increasingly militarizes its higher education, with retired admirals taking the lead, according to the Ministry of Defense of the United Kingdom.
According to the report, in February 2024, a new military research institute was established at the Moscow Higher School of Economics (HSE). The Institute of World Military Economics and Strategy as it is known was set-up by the hard-line political scientist, Sergey Karaganov. It will be headed by Admiral Sergey Avakyants, former commander of the Pacific Fleet, who was relieved of command in April 2023. Avakyants believes Russia is in a state of long-term confrontation with the West.
According to British intelligence, the new institute will cover politics and economics but will focus on the Military Industrial Complex of foreign nations. It will also focus on the study of strategic deterrence and the role of nuclear weapons.
Employees of the institute are mainly recruited from various faculties of the HSE. It will also invite researchers from various military academies, such as the Russian General Staff Academy.
"This will highly likely lead to closer interaction between the Russian academia and the defense sector, boosting the militarisation of higher education," the UK Ministry of Defense said.
Support of war among Russians
According to the Levada Center, support among Russians for the war has remained consistently high since February 2022.
In January 2024, the majority of respondents (77%) supported the war against Ukraine, while 16% did not support it.
Only a third of Russians believe that people like them bear moral responsibility for the deaths of civilians and the destruction in Ukraine.
