Not really. Context is important, I think. So I’m talking about Latvia specifically. Just after regaining independence we had to rebuild any military capability

Not really. Context is important, I think. So I’m talking about Latvia specifically. Just after regaining independence we had to rebuild any military capability from scratch. So a kind of a citizen paramilitary national guard was formed called “Zemessardze”. In the first few years it did everything. From securing the borders to guarding high level government officials. Zemessardze has a youth wing for teenagers who are interested in military stuff called Jaunsardze. So that’s what I did because a friend of mine wanted to do it but didn’t want to go alone. Looking back to it, there was completely no political indoctrination whatsoever. It was mostly physical conditioning, knowing your way around maps and terrain, basic wilderness survival skills, how to get over a stream without getting wet, a little bit of weapons training.