Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said on Tuesday that more than 200,000 people have been mobilized in the Russian army since the country’s “partial” military mobilization was announced on September 21 to fight in Ukraine.
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Officially, this mobilization, ordered by President Vladimir Putin, should make it possible to recruit 300,000 reservists with military experience or useful skills, while the Russian army is struggling on the Ukrainian front.
During a government meeting, Sergei Shoigu noted that “the training of members of the (new) formed units is taking place in 80 military fields and in six training centers,” stressing that these recruits will be sent to the front with other units. They already fought in Ukraine.
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According to him, a “large number” of people voluntarily presented themselves at military police stations in the country, before receiving an official mobilization order. However, he did not mention their number.
But the mobilization also caused great concern in Russia and opposition demonstrations in certain regions. It also prompted tens of thousands of men to leave the country in a hurry to avoid conscription.
Multiple cases of mistakenly mobilizing unqualified men – students, the elderly or sick – have also been reported and condemned by the Kremlin.
The Russian Defense Minister confirmed again, on Tuesday, that no soldier who performs his compulsory military service will be sent to the Ukrainian front, while on October 1, the authorities began the so-called “autumn” recruitment, which aims to mobilize 120,000 soldiers.
