Russian Defense Ministry (MoD) officials are touting Russia's military training capabilities, possibly in an effort to boost military recruitment and as part of a long-term effort to rebuild Russia's officer corps. The Russian Ministry of Defense also opened a branch of the Nakhimov Naval School in occupied Mariupol, Donetsk region, on September 2. A Russian blogger claims that Russian authorities are beginning to reopen previously closed military academies and is calling on Russian authorities to change teachers and curriculum to modernize the "old system of military education".
Russian occupation officials announced the start of the school year in occupied Ukraine, highlighting Russia's explicit efforts to co-opt the education system and forcibly Russify and militarize Ukrainian children and youth.
The occupation governor of Kherson Oblast, Vladimir Saldo, reports that the school year has started in 105 schools and 11 secondary schools in the occupied Kherson Oblast, and the occupation governor of Zaporozhye Oblast, Yevgeny Balitsky, claims that over 45,000 children have started school in the occupied Zaporozhye region. The occupation administration of Kherson Oblast emphasizes that schools in the occupied Kherson Oblast are starting their school year "according to Russian standards" for the third consecutive year. The head of the occupation structure in Donetsk region Denis Pushilin and the head of the occupation structure in Luhansk region Leonid Pasechnik highlighted the new social campaign "In the first class with knowledge". - a campaign aimed at providing first-graders with school supplies with the support of the Russian Ministry of Education, the NGO "Knowledge", the military-patriotic youth organization "Movement of the First", the Russian airline "Aeroflot" and the Russian National Movement of Young Cadets (Unarmy).
ISW has extensively reported on the role of Russian organizations dealing with "youth education", namely "Knowledge", "Movement of the First" and "Unarmy", in introducing pro-Russian patriotic and militarized values into schools in occupied Ukraine.
Ceremonies marking the first day of school put special emphasis on Russia's efforts to institutionalize the militarization of children and youth in order to create conditions for the integration of children into the Russian military and wartime economy. The head of the Crimean occupation, Sergei Aksyonov, announced that seven cadet classes had been created at Secondary General Education School No. 30 in occupied Simferopol under the leadership of the Crimean occupation branch Rosguardia and published photos of young children and teenagers in cadet-style ceremonial uniforms. A prominent Russian pro-war blogger published an interview with a teacher in the occupied city of Donetsk, who highlighted the fact that several of her students are fighting with the forces of the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) on the front lines. Pushilin also noted that the Russian space agency "Roscosmos" has funded a class on "physics in space" in the Donetsk Lyceum in the occupied city of Donetsk. "Roscosmos" participated in the technological innovation and production of the Russian defense industry during the war. Russia's efforts to indoctrinate children and youth in occupied Ukraine with Russian military-patriotic ideals through cadet programs and specialized courses supported by Russian federal structures are likely intended in part to create a multigenerational pool from which the Russian military could eventually draw. and to humiliate the Ukrainian identity in the occupied regions.
Iran is expected "soon" to supply ballistic missiles to Russia to support the Russian invasion of Ukraine. In its daily analysis, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) cited the Bloomberg article on Iran's expected imminent arms deliveries and pointed out that Russia's acquisition of Ababil ballistic missiles; or "Fatekh-360" likely to allow Russian forces to strike nearby Ukrainian targets while retaining domestically produced Russian missiles such as the "Iskander" for remote targets, deep in Ukrainian territory.
Russian President Vladimir Putin gave an interview to the Mongolian publication "Unvudur". ahead of his visit to Mongolia on September 2 and 3, in which he will focus on historical and contemporary Russian-Mongolian relations and current trilateral economic and energy initiatives with Mongolia and the People's Republic of China (PRC).
In the interview published on September 2, Putin highlighted Soviet-Mongolian relations and the 2019 Russia-Mongolia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Agreement. Putin also highlighted economic and energy cooperation initiatives to deepen relations between Russia, Mongolia and PRC and expressed confidence in the development of the Russia-Mongolia-China economic corridor and the "Power of Siberia 2" gas pipeline, which after its completion will pass from Russia through Mongolia to the PRC. Putin also assured that the Russian-led Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) and Mongolia had made significant progress in drafting an interim free trade agreement. Putin published such articles in North Korean and Vietnamese state newspapers ahead of his visits to the countries in June 2024. The Russian president's efforts targeting countries that have historically had friendly relations with the Soviet Union are aimed at forming a coalition to act as an alternative to the West.
Russian and Mongolian officials have indicated that the International Criminal Court (ICC) warrant for Putin's arrest will not affect Putin's ongoing visit to Mongolia, despite Mongolia's legal obligation to comply with the warrant.
Putin arrived in Ulaanbaatar on September 2, and before that Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the Kremlin was not worried about Mongolia's obligation to arrest Putin, as Russia and Mongolia maintain an "excellent dialogue". Russian state media said Mongolian President Ulzyebayar Zolbayar's spokesman denied reports that the ICC had appealed to Mongolia to implement Putin's arrest warrant. Russian authorities have previously stated that Russia does not recognize the jurisdiction of the ICC, but Mongolia has been a party to the Rome Statute since 2002.
On September 2, the Russian authorities detained the deputy commander of the Leningrad Military District (LVO), Major General Valery Mumindzhanov, on charges of corruption.
Kremlin information service TASS reported that Russia's Investigative Committee suspects that Mumindzhanov accepted bribes worth more than 20 million rubles (about $222,000) while he was head of the "Resource Assurance" department. in the Russian Ministry of Defense (MoD) and supervised contracts for the supply of Russian military uniforms. A Russian insider, who has previously correctly predicted several command changes in the Russian Defense Ministry, claims that Mumindzhanov was directly subordinate to former Russian Deputy Defense Minister Army General Dmitry Bulgakov, whom Russian authorities arrested on corruption charges on July 26 . The insider also claimed that Mumindzhanov has ties to current Secretary of the Russian Security Council and former Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu.
A prominent Kremlin-linked Russian pro-war blogger claims Mumindzhanov's arrest shows the Kremlin has no intention of curbing current Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov's "purge" of the Russian Ministry of Defense and that the arrests are not limited to a few high-ranking officials of the Ministry of Defense, but have been going on for five months. The military commentator also argued that continuing investigations against high-ranking officials of the Russian Ministry of Defense would satisfy public expectations for justice and the fight against corruption.
Russian forces have recently regained lost positions east of Korenevo, and ISW estimates that Ukrainian forces may have withdrawn from the settlement. A Russian blogger claims that Ukrainian forces have made little progress near Pogrebka and Malaya Loknya (both northwest of Suja) and that Russian forces have previously abandoned positions in these settlements to avoid encirclement.
Russian forces have recently advanced in the directions of Siversk, Chasiv Yar, Pokrovsk and southwest of the city of Donetsk.
Ukrainian forces have recently regained lost ground southeast of Pokrovsk amid continued Russian tactical gains in the area. Geolocation footage released on September 2 shows that Ukrainian forces have regained positions in the southwestern part of Novokhrodovka (southeast of Pokrovsk), and the Ukrainian General Staff reported that Russian forces in the direction of Pokrovsk are currently concentrating their attacks near Novokhrodovka. Ukrainian military observer Kostantin Mashovets stated that Ukrainian forces continued to hold Marinovka (south of Novokhrodovka), which Mashovets estimated prevented Russian forces from advancing south toward Selidovo (further southeast of Pokrovsk). The head of the Pokrovsk city administration, Serhiy Dobryak, said on September 2 that Ukraine has built about five defense lines in the Pokrovsk region and that Ukrainian forces continue to make efforts to strengthen existing defensive positions in order to protect Ukrainian operational security.
A Russian blogger claims that Ukrainian forces continue to strike Russian pontoon crossings across the Seym River in Glushkovsky District, Kursk Oblast.