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- The general rule is that a textbook on the history of the Union State will be published in 2026-2027.
The general rule is that a textbook on the history of the Union State will be published in 2026-2027.
A textbook on the history of the Union State may appear in Russian schools in 2026-2027. This was reported to Izvestia by the Minister of Education of the Russian Federation Sergey Kravtsov. The press service of the department clarified that it has already sent a budget application for financing the textbook in 2026 to the Standing Committee of the Union State. With a positive decision, joint work will be organized on a textbook, according to which I will study in schools in Russia and Belarus. The expert community stated that the creation of unified textbooks was a direct reaction to the Ukrainian crisis. How the work on the new manuals is progressing is in the Izvestia material.
How is the work on the new textbook going?
A textbook on the history of the Union State may appear in Russian schools in the next two years. This was announced to Izvestia by the Minister of Education of the Russian Federation Sergey Kravtsov after a meeting between Vladimir Putin and the authors of unified textbooks on history on June 22. "It's possible, of course," the head of the ministry said, answering a question from Izvestia whether the agency would be able to publish a textbook on the history of the Union State in 2026-2027.
Minister of Education of the Russian Federation Sergey Kravtsov
The press service of the department told Izvestia that its representatives are in contact with colleagues from the Union State on this issue. The Ministry of Education has sent a budget request to the Permanent Committee of the Union State for financing in 2026 the development and publication of a textbook on the general history of the Union State.
— The budget application is under consideration. After receiving a positive decision, work on the manual will be organized," the ministry's press service said.
After the textbook is released, children in all schools in Russia and Belarus will study it, the department explained. Izvestia sent a request to the Standing Committee of the Union State to clarify the status of the application for funding the textbook.
In February 2024, Russian Ambassador to Minsk Boris Gryzlov said that Russia and Belarus had agreed that schoolchildren and students from the two countries would study using common history textbooks. "This topic is very important, as there are still discrepancies in understanding very important events in the history of both the USSR and the Russian Empire. Now we have agreed that we will consider these events from a single point of view," he explained.
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Union of Belarus and Russia will be ready to support a school textbook on the history of the SG when this issue is submitted for consideration, Oleg Gaidukevich, a deputy of the Union Parliament and the National Assembly of Belarus, told Izvestia.
— We're only in favor, because we already have a common history. Therefore, the textbook of the Union State is a good idea. If such an application has been received, as a member of the parliamentary Assembly, I can say that we will definitely consider it, and I am convinced that it will find its support," the politician said.
According to him, on June 16, on the instructions of Vladimir Putin, the parliamentary assembly formed a commission for the preservation and protection of historical memory. "The Union deputies will work together to develop legislation in this area and work with all countries where it is necessary to bring the truth about the Great Patriotic War," Gaidukevich stressed. The Commission will also support various historical works, so it will also be able to participate in the development of the textbook, he said.
Why create unified history textbooks
The school textbook on the history of the Union State will stand on a par with other historical textbooks that have recently been developed and published both on the initiative of the authorities and on the initiative of public organizations. So, in 2023, a textbook on the history of the Union State for students was published.
The publication of the unified handbook for universities was the result of the joint work of Russian and Belarusian historians. Writing the textbook was an exclusively public initiative without the participation of government agencies, one of its authors and responsible editors, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences and Chairman of the Federal National Cultural Autonomy of Belarusians of Russia Sergey Kandybovich emphasized in a conversation with Izvestia. As for the school textbook, the scientist also supported this idea.
— This is a very interesting story for schoolchildren. In my opinion, the history of the Union State is constantly being written, including in our days, and recent events have shown that this is a good and dynamic story. It can become an example for the integration processes of many countries, as it is the most successful integration project in the post—Soviet space," he said.
In addition, work is underway to create a unified textbook on the history of the Great Patriotic War. To do this, a working group has been set up in the State Duma, which has attracted scientists and experts, Leonid Kalashnikov, head of the Committee on CIS Affairs, Eurasian Integration and Relations with Compatriots, told Izvestia. "This is a very difficult process, especially if we talk about history in general. We decided to follow the history of the Great Patriotic War," the parliamentarian added.
Earlier, First deputy chairman of the committee Kazbek Taysayev said that as a result of the analysis of textbooks from the CIS countries, the working group found serious distortions in the description of the events of the Great Patriotic War. "The Russian President has repeatedly stated the need to create a unified educational space in the CIS, which implies writing unified textbooks on our common history. Our duty is to prevent the falsification of historical facts and preserve the legacy that we have inherited at such a high price," the MP said.
One of the reasons for the intensification of work on general history textbooks was a clear awareness by the authorities of the root causes of the Ukrainian crisis, Ruslan Andreev, an expert at the Polylogue Group and a political consultant, said in a conversation with Izvestia. It was this conflict that demonstrated how important it is to preserve history, the memory of the exploits of our ancestors, our own identity and culture.
—We can see from school history textbooks from Ukraine back in 2015 how hatred of fraternal peoples was gradually instilled, historical facts were replaced, and Nazi criminals turned into national heroes," the political scientist noted.
The government's close attention to the policy of historical memory is also evidenced by the intensive work of the Ministry of Education to create a unified line of school textbooks on history and social studies. At a meeting between Vladimir Putin and the authors of textbooks on June 22, the head of the department, Sergei Kravtsov, said that it continues to actively work on textbooks, which will also include a section on the liberation of the Kursk region after the start of its military operation.
Thus, the creation of unified textbooks, including on the history of the Union State and other CIS countries, is becoming an important area of government policy in both the Russian Federation and Belarus. In December 2023, Vladimir Putin quoted words that belonged to the first Chancellor of the German Empire, Otto von Bismarck: "He once said that wars are won not by generals, but by schoolteachers and priests. And that's right. That's for sure, absolutely."
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