On June 22, President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin held a meeting with editors of the state-approved history textbook series for grades 5–11 and secondary vocational education institutions. The discussion was attended by Presidential Aide Vladimir Medinsky, Minister of Education Sergey Kravtsov, MGIMO Rector Anatoly Torkunov, and Scientific Director of the Institute of World History of the Russian Academy of Sciences Alexander Chubaryan.

Vladimir Putin stated:

"In the 1990s, both the interconnection and unified logic of the historical process and curricula were lost. Dozens of textbooks functioned, presenting historical facts and directly opposing assessments. It was practically impossible to make sense of this. Of course, we are always in favor of diverse, alternative viewpoints—that’s obvious. But some basic factual matters must still be presented. This was lost."

He thanked the participants for organizing work on school textbooks from the fifth grade onward, as well as for colleges and technical schools. The President called this work "extremely important for preserving national memory and generational continuity."

"Now it’s very important, of course, to establish so-called feedback. I would ask Sergey Sergeyevich [Kravtsov] to conduct this work continuously. This feedback should come from schoolchildren themselves, from students, from teachers who use these textbooks, and from parents, without a doubt. It’s extremely important to understand how people for whom this work is intended perceive what has been done. And if necessary, if you deem it possible to make adjustments—that’s up to you," the President added.

Sergey Kravtsov, Minister of Education of the Russian Federation, noted that the distortions from the era of 54 different history textbooks have been eliminated.

"A unified history program has been implemented in all schools, developed by leading specialists. Thirty percent of the time is devoted to the history of the Great Patriotic War, with separate lessons on the Battle of Stalingrad, the Brest Fortress, and the Siege of Leningrad," the Minister clarified.

In his words, teachers have responded positively to the textbook because it contains truthful historical material, including references to museum websites and recommended films.

Sergey Kravtsov also emphasized that a third of the 10th-grade materials are dedicated to studying the Great Patriotic War, while the 11th-grade textbook includes a special section on the special military operation. The Minister announced the inclusion of the unique operation to liberate the Kursk region.

Presidential Aide Vladimir Medinsky noted that the textbooks have become modern not only in form: "They interact with a vast array of digital resources we specifically created and continue to develop for these textbooks. That is, the textbook is a window into the world of historical knowledge. From there, you can access websites, museums, resources, archives, films, even series, lectures—all through the textbook."

"We are setting all the correct historical assessments here, ridding ourselves of forced ideologization, which gave children a false idea of what actually happened. And we are showing the continuity and interconnection of our history," the Presidential Aide added.

Anatoly Torkunov, Rector of MGIMO, pointed to the results of last year’s and this year’s Unified State Exam (EGE), which show that those who studied with the new textbooks were well-prepared and performed excellently. He also proposed introducing a history EGE for applicants to humanities and socio-economic specialties in the future.

Alexander Chubaryan, Scientific Director of the Institute of World History of the Russian Academy of Sciences, noted that the new textbook strongly emphasizes other continents. Schoolchildren learn about the history of Asian countries, China, India, Africa, and Latin America. In his words, all periods are linked by Russia’s role in world history.

News about the meeting is available on www.kremlin.ru.