Kremlin Has Increased Spending on Expanding Its Network of Loyal Young Leaders, Journalists, and Bloggers Abroad by 1.5 Times

Russia continues to increase spending on programs for foreigners. The federal agency Rossotrudnichestvo, which promotes Kremlin interests abroad and is considered a front for Russian intelligence services overseas, has spent a record sum on this over the past 14 years.

In the incomplete year of 2025, Rossotrudnichestvo signed contracts for various programs for foreign youth, journalists, and bloggers totaling 412 million rubles, according to our calculations. This is 1.5 times more than last year.

The bulk of the spending went to Rossotrudnichestvo’s main program — Novoe Pokolenie [New Generation]. Under this program, foreigners aged 14 to 40 — activists, journalists, bloggers, entrepreneurs, scientists — are paid for short-term trips to Russia. They are taken on excursions, hikes, invited to meetings with officials, and attend trainings led by propagandists. Novoe Pokolenie, according to the concept of the organizers, expands the circle of active young people abroad who are 'constructively' disposed toward Russia. The Kremlin expects that participants in the program will eventually take high positions in their home countries and, thanks to the warm reception in Russia, will become loyal leaders to the Kremlin abroad.

Last year, Vladimir Putin instructed to expand the Novoe Pokolenie program and increase its funding by 384 million rubles annually.

In 2025, according to government procurement data, Rossotrudnichestvo will spend less on the program than Putin instructed — 357.3 million rubles. However, this is still a record sum for all the years the program has been running, since 2011. In 2025, 1,600 participants of Novoe Pokolenie are expected to visit Russia.

A year ago, the program cost Rossotrudnichestvo 127.8 million rubles — almost three times less than in 2025. At that time, they planned to bring 1,000 young leaders to Russia. 921 people came, according to the annual report of Rossotrudnichestvo. Of these, 603 were from post-Soviet countries, 264 from Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and the Americas. The exact number of participants from European countries is not disclosed: they are included among the remaining 54 delegates.

“The journey that reshaped my perspective.” Foreign journalists in Moscow

Within the framework of Novoe Pokolenie, foreigners spend their time in various ways. Some raft down rivers in Altai, others establish connections in the energy sector and participate in the Eastern Economic Forum, while others go on excursions around Moscow, and some even adopt Russian experience in conducting elections. Delegates participate in master classes on making pelmeni and dance in kokoshniks. They are told that elections in Russia are 'completely open' and trusted by 80% of Russians.

There are separate tracks for foreign journalists and bloggers. They attend trainings at Russian propaganda media — RT and Sputnik, which are part of the Rossiya Segodnya holding under the leadership of Margarita Simonyan and Dmitry Kiselyov. The holding is fully funded from the state budget. “RT is one of the best Russian media, which honestly and creatively tells about the world. And the goal of our Novoe Pokolenie program is to give you knowledge, connections, and inspiration to use them in your own countries,” — this is how participants of the program were welcomed by Rossotrudnichestvo Deputy Head Dmitry Polikanov.

IStories reported that at such trainings, foreign journalists are taught, for example, to 'debunk anti-Russian myths imposed by Western propaganda.' At the same time, the Rossiya Segodnya holding itself and RT divisions are under sanctions from the European Union and other Western countries for 'spreading propaganda and disinformation about Russia’s aggressive war against Ukraine.' The EU specifically notes that 'Rossiya Segodnya' spreads information about Western countries’ responsibility for the food crisis in Africa due to sanctions against Russia. Rossotrudnichestvo is also under sanctions for supporting the war.

After participants from post-Soviet countries, the main audience for Novoe Pokolenie journalism trainings in 2025 are precisely media representatives from Africa. Rossotrudnichestvo posts short interviews with them on its YouTube channel, which has 3,700 subscribers.

For example, a well-known journalist from Zambia, Jonah Buyoya, who has received awards for his investigative journalism, including from the BBC, came to study at RT. In 2024, he spoke negatively about Russia’s military invasion of Ukraine — including because it undermines Africa’s food and economic security. He wrote: “Media agencies and human rights groups have reported that thousands of lives, including civilians, soldiers, and militants, have been lost since Russia first illegally annexed Crimea in 2014. The casualty count continues to climb as hostilities endure. However, the direct impact on Ukrainians, both civilian and military, is only part of the story. The consequences of this invasion extend far beyond the immediate regions, with particularly severe impacts felt in less developed countries.” In Russia, such statements could become grounds for a criminal case. However, this did not prevent him from interning at Russia’s main propaganda holding in 2025. “The New Generation program has been a great opportunity to learn about the alternative journalism as well, that is the journalism as largely practiced by RT,” shares the journalist.

A journalist from Nigeria’s largest media holding NTA, Frama Panyi says, that the trip was a turning point in her career: “The lectures we had were really insightful, they opened my eyes to a different perspective about my profession. Learning about being objective and subjective. (...) I learned a lot. It has been a wonderful experience generally”.

Another journalist from Nigeria, UpgradeTV host Chioma Kalu, wrote on LinkedIn that the trip to Russia was not only a professional opportunity for her, but also 'reshaped my perspective.' “Thanks to RT’s immersive training and certification program, I’m excited to announce that I am now officially an RT Certified Journalist”, she shares. “This recognition not only affirms my commitment to international media standards but also enhances my ability to report global stories with a more critical and balanced lens. This experience has reinforced my belief in responsible journalism, one that seeks truth, values diversity of thought, and dares to go beyond the expected narrative.”

In 2023, under the Novoe Pokolenie program, journalists from Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, for example, visited Russia, reported IStories. In their materials, they openly support the Putin regime, the war in Ukraine, and even express admiration for Ramzan Kadyrov.

Rossotrudnichestvo directly states that it organizes trips, events, and awards for foreign media representatives in order to form a pool of 'pro-Russian' foreign journalists.

“Whoever paid is the boss.” Why Russia invites young foreigners

By attracting foreigners to its side, the Russian regime seeks to ensure that in Africa, the Middle East, Asia, and South America, Russia is perceived positively — as a partner and donor. The Kremlin would like to lead the so-called Global South in its confrontation with the Global North — the U.S., Europe, and Israel, believes Anna Fenko, associate professor at the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences at the University of Amsterdam.

“People like simple schemes, binary oppositions — such as, for example, the opposition of North and South,” the researcher explains. “And as funny as it may seem, considering how much of Russia is beyond the Arctic Circle, in this context Russia is perceived by many as part of the Global South, which is fighting against American imperialism and Europe. This idea is becoming increasingly popular among Western students. I see that among them there is less support for Ukraine in the war with Russia. This happened after October 7, 2023 [the terrorist attack by Hamas with the seizure of Israeli hostages and subsequent Israeli strikes on Gaza, which killed tens of thousands of people, — Ed.].”

The Kremlin expects to use participants in trips to Russia for its own purposes. “The Russian political leadership is convinced: whoever paid is the boss,” Anna Fenko continues. “All they think about is money. They paid participants for the program, for tickets and food, and now they are their property. They will be used, nurtured, and through them, the content that is beneficial [to the Russian authorities] will be broadcast abroad. The Kremlin wants not only to be feared, but also to be loved. Their 'soft power' is the hope that if we give everyone a little money now, they will love us.”

The strategy is confirmed by Rossotrudnichestvo itself: “It is important that participants, upon returning home, do not lose contact with Rossotrudnichestvo, continue to visit our Russian Houses, participate in events, and become ambassadors of the Russian world in their own countries,” said Deputy Head of the organization Dmitry Polikanov.

Now the agency is expanding its presence in African countries.

“Losing influence in the near abroad is catastrophic.” Promoting the Russian language

In addition to spending on foreign youth, since the start of the full-scale war, Russia has increased spending on promoting the Russian language abroad. In 2023, a state program was adopted — Support and Promotion of the Russian Language Abroad. In 2024, 500 million rubles were allocated for it, and in 2025 — already 1.8 billion, that is, three and a half times more. Of this, almost 1 billion rubles will go to 'stimulating interest in the Russian language,' including through the Russian World Foundation and the Russian language learning website Window to Russia, which is developed by RT.

Rossotrudnichestvo supplies schools and Russian cultural centers abroad with educational materials in Russian. Textbook deliveries are a major expense for the agency. In 2025, the agency spent about 170 million rubles on them, according to IStories’ analysis. This is one-fifth of the total sum of all Rossotrudnichestvo government procurements. Last year, the amount was almost half as much — about 90 million. However, due to the increased cost of print production and logistics, it cannot be said that the number of textbooks supplied grew proportionally to the spending.

In 2025, Rossotrudnichestvo is sending textbooks to Europe (Austria, Slovakia, Slovenia, Albania, Belgium, Hungary, Italy, Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Belarus), to Asia (Mongolia, Laos, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan), to Africa (Egypt, Zambia, Tanzania, Mauritius), as well as to post-Soviet countries. Among the materials are also history textbooks edited by Vladimir Medinsky, rewritten to suit the Kremlin. They state that 'the West’s idée fixe has become destabilizing the situation inside Russia,' and also tell about the emergence of 'Ukrainian neo-Nazism.' The authors explain the invasion of Ukraine by saying that Ukraine sought to join NATO. They claim: “This could have been, perhaps, the end of civilization. This could not be allowed.”

In 2024, researchers from the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS) analyzed textbooks in CIS countries, Middle Eastern states, and China and found 'negative images' of Russia. In textbooks in post-Soviet countries, Russia is portrayed as a colonial state that oppressed peoples in annexed territories and harmed their cultures. Head of Rossotrudnichestvo Yevgeny Primakov called these facts 'crap': “We see the influence of these textbooks. These are the very two lost decades. We are responsible for the textbooks we ourselves supply to Russian schools abroad. There can be no talk of any colonization within the USSR. But in local schools, there were textbooks with all sorts of crap. This part, as far as I know, has been cleaned up.”

Primakov admits that Russia has begun to lose influence in the CIS, which for it is 'catastrophic.' According to him, these countries are needed by Russia to mitigate the impact of sanctions. “Today, we understand the enormous importance of the near abroad for Russia, especially in conditions when they tried to drive us into isolation,” Primakov says. “This is parallel import, economic projects, trade corridors, payment systems, not to mention labor migration, which is now a very painful issue in our country.” At the same time, he cynically comments on those who in 'friendly' countries, in response to another wave of repressions against migrants in Russia, call for refusing to cooperate with it: “Where are these people needed, except in Russia? In China? Maybe Europe is waiting for them to work there? Hardly.”

Despite the increase in spending on attracting foreigners and supplying textbooks, Rossotrudnichestvo’s ability to wield 'soft power' is limited. Its budget is 5.5 billion rubles per year ($66 million). For comparison: the budget of the American international development agency USAID in 2024, before the recent decision by the Donald Trump administration to liquidate it, was $44 billion, that is, almost 700 times more.