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Tallinn, Estonia (AP) — Ads promise cash bonuses and attractive perks. A recruiter is making a phone call to a qualified man. Enlistment offices work with universities and social service agencies to attract students and the unemployed.
A new campaign is underway across Russia this spring, seeking recruits to replenish the army for the war in Ukraine..
As fighting continues on Ukrainian battlefields like Bakhmut And both sides are preparing for counterattacks that could cost more lives. The Kremlin’s war machine is desperate for new recruits.
Mobilized 300,000 reservists in September — dubbed a “partial” call-up — caused panic across the country as most men under the age of 65 were officially included in the reserves. Tens of thousands fled Russia instead of reporting to the conscription station.
The Kremlin has denied that another call-up is planned for what it calls a “special military operation” in Ukraine.
But amid widespread uncertainty about whether such a move would eventually materialize, the government has warned, either at makeshift recruitment centers set up in various regions or by phone from enlisted personnel, that We are inviting men to volunteer. That way we can “avoid declaring a formal second wave of mobilization” after the first one proves to be unpopular.according to a recent report by the US-based think tank War Institute.
A Muscovite told the Associated Press that his employer, a state-run organization, said it would collect military registration cards for all male employees of combat age and give them a reprieve. , said the move still sent waves of terror through him.
“It makes you nervous and scares you,” said a resident, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation.
It’s been over a week since he submitted the card, but he said he’s worried because waivers are usually resolved in a day or two.
Russian media reports that men across the country have received summonses from enlistment offices. In most of these cases, the men were only asked to update their records. In other countries they were ordered to participate in military training.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said last week that the service of summonses to update the records of enlistment offices was a “normal practice” and an “ongoing business.”
Other unconfirmed reports said authorities have instructed local governments to recruit a certain number of volunteers. Some officials have announced that they will set up recruitment centers with the aim of getting men to sign contracts that will allow them to be sent into combat as professional soldiers.
Advertisements are displayed on government websites and social media accounts of government agencies and organizations such as libraries and high schools.
One of them was posted by the local government of the West Yaroslavl region, promising a one-time bonus of about $ 3,800 for registration, and if sent to Ukraine, up to $ 2,500 per month, plus ” I was promised about $100 a day for “involvement”. $650 for each kilometer of advance in the attacking team, in active offensive operations.
The ad said soldiers would also get deferred tax and loan repayments, priority admission for their children to college, generous compensation for their families if they were injured or killed in action, and even veteran status with many more benefits. I got
In the Siberian city of Novosibirsk, authorities have asked universities, colleges and technical schools to post recruiting advertisements on their websites, said Sergei Chernyshov, who founded a private technical school there.
Chernyshov posted the ad on his social media accounts “so everyone knows what our city hall is up to,” but said he has no plans to put it on the school’s website. told the Associated Press. He said it was “weird” to target vocational school students.
Other efforts include enlisted personnel meeting with college students and unemployed men, and calling men to volunteer.
One Muscovite, who spoke on condition of anonymity for his own safety, said he was surprised by the politeness of such calls. )”Thank you goodbye”
According to Grigory Sverdlin, founder of Go by the Forest, a group that helps men avoid mobilization, there have been rare cases where recruiting authorities have actually pressured men to sign.
The group receives up to 100 messages a day from men seeking advice on dealing with subpoenas and enlisted personnel, up from dozens a day in recent months. In most cases, officials want to update records with addresses and phone numbers, and may try to recruit men in the process.
But Sverdlin said some cases stand out.
In the Vologda region, about 400 kilometers (250 miles) north of Moscow, the group said that nearly everyone who went to the enlistment office after receiving a summons was forced to “sign a paper barring them from leaving the area.” ‘, he said. .
Attorney Alexei Tabalov, who runs the Conscript’s School’s legal aid group, now sees nothing wrong with the authorities distributing subpoenas. Part of the notice is traditionally that he will start on April 1 for those who qualify for compulsory service, before the Russian spring conscription draft.
All Russian men between the ages of 18 and 27 are required to serve in the military for one year, but a significant percentage either avoid the draft for health reasons or get a student deferment. Conscription avoidance rates are particularly high in Moscow and other major cities, with many simply avoiding conscription officers with conscription warrants.
According to Tabarov, the men reported going to the enlistment office to update their records, which included “punching the bush, promoting the idea of signing a contract, and how they loved their homeland and how they loved it.” There are officials who are talking about how to protect the
After 13 months of war that killed and wounded tens of thousands of people, he didn’t think volunteer work could be attractive.
“People already understand what it means to sign a contract,” he said. “People who have been burned once are unlikely to fall into the same trap.”
Tabarov said his group continues to receive messages from soldiers wanting to terminate their contracts, but until President Vladimir Putin ends partial mobilizations that began in September with new orders. He said it was not legally possible.
“Withdrawal from the war automatically means criminal prosecution,” said Tabarov, adding that since December there have been a spate of criminal cases, including prosecutions of soldiers who deserted or went AWOL.
News outlet Mediazona counted 247 verdicts in 536 criminal cases on these and similar charges, with more than a third of those convicted receiving suspended sentences and authorities putting them at the forefront. Added that it can be sent back.
The current recruitment campaign is similar to the one conducted last summer before the September call-up, said Katerina Stepanenko, a Russia analyst at the War Research Institute.
At the time, the authorities also used financial incentives and various volunteer battalions were formed, but the effort was clearly unsuccessful as Putin eventually turned to partial mobilization.
Not sure if this will be successful.
“They have already recruited a good chunk of those who were given financial incentives last summer, and last year they had a hard time doing so,” Stepanenko said.
Current recruitment activity demonstrates the military’s awareness of the need for human resources in Ukraine.
“What the 300,000 military mobilization campaign has told us is that it is not enough for Russia to form enough strike groups to proceed with offensive operations,” she said.
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Associated Press writer Yuras Karmanau contributed to this report.
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Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine.
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