Russian Defense Minister Shoigu tells Putin mobilization is complete
Russia has called up the planned number of reservists — 300,000 people — as part of its “partial mobilization,” Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu told Russian President Vladimir Putin during a meeting on Friday:
Today, we completed the dispatch of citizens who were called up, notification of citizens has stopped, and no additional tasks are planned. The task you set —300,000 people — is complete. We have no additional tasks planned.
In the future, military commissariats will recruit only volunteers and contract soldiers, he added.
According to Shoigu, 82,000 mobilized men were sent to the “special military operation” (as Russian authorities call the war). Another 218,000 are in training at educational centers and training grounds.
During the course of partial mobilization, we called up and assigned to units more than 1,300 representatives of governmental organs of various levels, and more than 27,000 employees of private businesses. 13,000 citizens expressed their desire to fulfill their duty without waiting to be called up, and we sent them to units as volunteers.
He added that the average age of reservists who were called up is 35.
Shoigu acknowledged problems with the supply of conscripts, however he said problems occurred only in the first stage of mobilization and have been resolved. Putin also noted that problems were inevitable, since there has been no draft in a long time, reports RIA Novosti.
Representatives of Russia’s Western Military District (ZVO) previously denied that the “partial mobilization” had been suspended in St. Petersburg, after speaker of the St. Petersburg Legislative Assembly Alexander Belsky announced that mobilization in the city would end on October 30. “It was announced by a presidential decree and it can be ended only by a presidential decree,” ZVO public relations reported.
After Shoigu’s report to Putin, ZVO representatives clarified that they meant that “the main activities have been completed.”
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Mobilization was announced in Russia on September 21. In the unclassified part of Putin’s decree, there is no information about the number of people authorities planned to call up. Shoigu said the number was 300,000.
Mobilization will officially end when Vladimir Putin signs another decree to that effect. So far he has not done so.
Mobilization in Russia
- ‘If you croak, we’ll say you killed yourself.’ A 20-year-old Moscow conscript went on a hunger strike and refused to wear a uniform or follow orders. Two weeks later, he was discharged and came home.
- Written off in advance How an untrained and unarmed ‘platoon’ of new conscripts from Moscow was decimated near Svatove
- 'Like bats out of hell' Many of the draft evaders fleeing Russia for Central Asia have been government workers
- ‘It’s not the most comfortable place, but I’m free’ The IT specialist waiting out Putin’s draft alone in the forest