Russians Boast That Shahed Drones are Manufactured by Minors

Russia has released a series of recruitment promotional videos to attract minors to the production facility where Shaheds are manufactured in the Alabuga special economic zone in Tatarstan.

The video was published by the Alabuga Polytech College, which recruits teenagers to work in drone production.

In the videos, teenagers are lured into military production with the promise of very high salaries: up to 100,000 rubles ($1,300) at the start, 150,000 rubles ($1,940) in the second year of work, and 350,000 rubles ($4,540) in the third.

According to the advertising materials, minors as young as 14 are employed in production. To simplify employment, the Tatarstan authorities have created a regional program to promote the employment of young people and teenagers aged 14 and older.

In this way, the Russians are trying to compensate for the shortage of labor in the drone production industry, which they are constantly expanding. Another way to attract workers is through a broad recruitment campaign in poor countries, particularly in Africa, Asia, and Latin America.

In addition, Russia plans to bring in up to 12,000 workers from North Korea to the Alabuga factories. To discuss the details of attracting labor, a meeting was held at the end of October 2025 at the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs between local government officials and the representatives of the North Korean company Jihyang Technology Trade Company, which is responsible for finding and selecting Korean workers.

According to Ukrainian intelligence, North Koreans are promised to be paid approximately $2.5 per hour of work, and the shift will last at least 12 hours.