Russian veteran tells schoolchildren to study the Kalashnikov rifle ‘so that the whole world speaks Russian’

At a school assembly in Siberia on Tuesday — the nationwide first day of school in Russia — a veteran of the war in Ukraine urged children to study the workings of the Kalashnikov rifle so that “the whole world speaks Russian”.

Alexander Klaus made the remarks at Lyceum No. 11 in Krasnoyarsk. Footage of his speech was published by the local news outlet Prospekt Mira, and independent broadcaster TV Rain later identified the speaker.

“As one politician once said, if you want the whole world to speak Russian, study the workings of the Kalashnikov rifle. Once again, happy [first day of school] to everyone. Victory will be ours,” Klaus told the students, paraphrasing a quote by the late ultranationalist politician Vladimir Zhirinovsky.

Klaus is a regular fixture at patriotic and pro-war events for students in the Krasnoyarsk region. In October 2025, speaking at a youth forum in the regional capital, he urged young men to sign military contracts after completing their conscript service and go to war, describing this as a “heroic act”.

According to his own account, Klaus signed a military contract as a volunteer in August 2023. He has said he took part in assaults near the towns of Avdiivka, Pisky, and Vodiane in eastern Ukraine, serving as both a machine gunner and a medic. He returned to Krasnoyarsk after suffering a concussion and an arm wound. In 2025, he said he intended to return to the front as either a medic or a machine gunner.