Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said on Friday that the “partial mobilization” of 300,000 reservists to fight in Ukraine, which Russia announced in September, has been completed.
Speaking with Russian President Vladimir Putin in a meeting broadcast on state television, Shoigu told Putin: “The task (to mobilize) the 300,000 people you set has been completed. No other measures are planned.”
Shoigu said that of the 300,000 mobilized soldiers, 218,000 remained in training, 82,000 were sent to the conflict zone, of which 41,000 were assigned to the troops.
In his view, conscription for the Ukraine campaign in the future will be based on volunteers and professional soldiers rather than mobilizing more than a few million Russian reservists.
Putin announced a “partial mobilization” of 300,000 reservists on September 21, after military defeats saw Russian forces being driven from the eastern Ukraine’s Kharkiv region and coming under increasing pressure in the southern Kherson region.
The movement fueled the migration of military-age men from Russia, with tens of thousands heading to countries such as Georgia, Armenia, and Kazakhstan that allow Russian visa-free entry.
More than 2,000 people were arrested in protests against mobilization across Russia. There was public backlash over cases of men mobilized despite medical advice or a lack of military experience.
Responding to Shoigu, Putin acknowledged that problems with mobilization were “inevitable” and said “corrections” needed to be made in the development of the Russian Armed Forces.
source: Noticias
