Overview
- Mikhail Kovalchuk, head of the state-run Kurchatov Institute and a longtime Putin associate, alleged Western elites intend to reduce the global population using an LGBT agenda, promotion of child-free families, and ultimately a biological weapon.
- He delivered the remarks at Moscow’s Forum of Class Teachers, a state-aligned gathering of educators, where he said most people would be wiped out by a virus while a small elite would be served by robots.
- The event underscored official visibility: the forum opened with senior Kremlin official Sergei Kiriyenko and featured Kirill Dmitriev and Vladimir Medinsky on stage.
- Kovalchuk’s claims align with Russia’s legal clampdown, including a 2023 Supreme Court ruling labeling the “international LGBT movement” extremist and a 2024 prohibition on so-called childfree propaganda.
- Reporting also notes Kovalchuk’s oversight of government-backed anti‑ageing and genetics programs, including projects said to involve Maria Vorontsova, Putin’s eldest daughter, while forum organizers declined comment.