Russian children living in the EU are harassed because of the language they speak and exposed to LGBT propaganda in kindergartens, so they no longer want to live there, pro-Kremlin propaganda claims.
NEWS: Six-year-old twins Hanna and Luka, born and raised in Germany, refused to return home after visiting their grandmother in Russia because they were being bullied at school by Ukrainian children who were teasing them about their Russian origins, their mother Natalia Gunia told RT. The children's parents are divorced, and Natalia is of Russian origin.
"There were girls from Ukraine in the third and fourth grades, and when they found out that my daughter spoke Russian, the problems began: they spat in her face, insulted her, hit her on the head, and pushed her down the stairs... I insisted that the school principal resolve the issue, but nothing changed," she said.
According to Natalia, Luka was also harassed by the boys, who refused to talk to him because he openly said that he loved Russia.
The woman also recalls that even in kindergarten, four-year-olds were taught about non-traditional relationships. "My daughter came and told me that her teacher had explained to her that she could love a girlfriend and even live with her. At four years old," Natalia says outraged. According to her, Hanna and Luka are happy in Russia — they go to kindergarten, learn the language, and are looking forward to starting school.
NARRATIVES: 1. Children of Russian origin are discriminated against in Western schools. 2. LGBT propaganda is imposed on children in European kindergartens. 3. Russia provides a safe and moral environment for raising children. 4. Ukrainian refugees express ethnic hatred toward their Russian classmates in Western schools.
PURPOSE: To discredit the European education system; to promote Russia as morally superior to the West; to justify Russia's hybrid war against the West and its large-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Reality: European schools protect all children regardless of their origin, and sex education follows age-appropriate standards.
WHY THE NARRATIVES ARE FALSE: The article was published by RT (Russia Today), a Russian state-controlled media organization officially classified as a propaganda tool by European and American authorities. RT was banned in the (EU) Regulation 2022/350 of March 1, 2022, following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The platform constantly disseminates false narratives designed to undermine trust in Western democratic institutions and present Russia in a favorable light.
The story presented by RT follows a typical propaganda template: a Russian family suffers discrimination in the West and finds happiness in Russia. The case described cannot be independently verified, the names of the people involved are incomplete, and the details provided are vague. RT systematically uses such "testimonials" to construct false narratives about discrimination against Russians in the West.
The image published by RT and other pro-Kremlin media outlets shows two children, who appear to be around 6 years old, alongside a woman. However, there are several obvious inconsistencies in the text of the news article. RT claims that these Russian children were harassed in third and fourth grade in Germany, which is hard to believe, given that the age of students in these grades is usually 10–11 years old. Furthermore, the article claims that once in Russia, the minors "go to kindergarten" and "look forward to starting school." This statement is contradictory: how could children who have graduated from third and fourth grade be enrolled in kindergarten again? In addition, the article provides no concrete evidence—there are no video interviews, recordings, or documents to support the story. The only image presented also raises questions: in the background, the inscription "Graduates – 2025" is clearly visible, suggesting that the photo may have been taken at a kindergarten graduation ceremony in Russia, not in the context presented by RT. These inconsistencies and the lack of verifiable evidence indicate that the story is propaganda and aims to convey a political message rather than present a true account.
It should be noted that Germany, like other EU countries, has strict legislation against discrimination in schools, and federal and regional educational authorities monitor cases of ethnic harassment. Germany’s Fundamental Law guarantees equal rights for all children, regardless of their origin, and the German education system includes specific integration programs for children from immigrant families. German schools have specialized counselors and clear procedures for managing conflicts between students.
Claims of systematic harassment of Russian children by Ukrainian refugees are not supported by official statistics or reports from human rights organizations. The German Ministry of Education has not recorded any significant increase in incidents of ethnic discrimination in schools since the start of the war in Ukraine. On the contrary, German authorities have implemented special programs to facilitate the integration of Ukrainian refugees and prevent interethnic tensions in schools .
Sex education programmes in the EU countries are developed based on World Health Organization recommendations and UNESCO standards. These programs are age-appropriate and do not include "LGBT propaganda" for young children. In Germany, sex education for kindergarten children is limited to basic knowledge about body parts, hygiene rules, and respect for oneself and others.
Russian propaganda constantly portrays Russia as superior to the West, but international statistics contradict this narrative. Germany surpasses Russia in terms of child welfare, according to UNICEF reports , thanks to its stable education system, widespread access to quality healthcare, and social policies that support the balanced development of children. The Russian education system has been heavily militarized in recent years, with the introduction of mandatory "patriotic education" programs and military training in schools. Moscow authorities are criticized for using schools as a tool to indoctrinate children with nationalist and anti-Western messages. Currently, the curriculum includes subjects such as "Fundamentals of National Security" and "Military History of Russia," which promote an aggressive view of international relations.
CONTEXT: The article was published amid Russia's efforts to attract back citizens from the diaspora, especially from Europe, to compensate for the exodus caused by the war in Ukraine and military mobilization. Moscow has launched repatriation programs with financial benefits and administrative facilities, heavily promoted by RT through idealized stories about "returning home" and by portraying Europe as hostile to Russians. At the same time, Russian propaganda exploits prejudices against Ukrainian refugees to fuel tensions between immigrant communities and undermine European solidarity by spreading false narratives about their behavior.
