A Russian soldier patrolling one of the Ukrainian cities destroyed via Russia AFP photo
The Russian State Duma appears to be on the verge of passing a bill allowing school graduates to enlist in the Russian army under contract, without having completed military service or received any kind of vocational training. The move, which will allow Russia to send very young men to fight in Ukraine, according to one human rights advocate, will make the Russian armed forces “incredibly unprofessional,” with infantrymen hired as “cannon fodder. “
The bill, which is now due to pass a momentary reading in the Duma on June 28*, introduces amendments through the parliamentary defense committee and is likely to be temporarily followed and signed by Russian leader Vladimir Putin. Moscow wants infantrymen for its war opposed to Ukraine, which has triumphed over some obstacles.
If approved, 18-year-olds will be able to sign contracts to serve in the military immediately after completing high school. At the moment, this is only imaginable after other young people have finished a technical college, which means they have one. or two more years and have at least some kind of profession.
Russia has a compulsory military service of one year, starting at the age of 18, however, according to the Ministry of Defense, no more than 5% perform their service after completing their studies, either due to problems of physical condition, extracurricular education or other reasons. (including almost in fact corruption).
Russia claimed in 2014 and this year that those recruits were not sent to fight in Ukraine. There is evidence in 2014 that this is false. The draconian new law introduced in 2022 after Russia’s large-scale invasion of Ukraine made it difficult to locate details, however, there are in fact no cases where the government has been forced to acknowledge that recruits had been sent. It is also believed that at least some of the young men killed in the sinking of the battleship Moskva were recruits.
While the vast majority of Russians are lately passive in their attitude toward Russia’s war against Ukraine (whether they do it or not), the widespread use of conscription or mobilization would make more parents feel the consequences of war. That is probably why the new amendments have been proposed. At present, other young people have studied a little more or have finished at least the first 3 months of military service before making the decision to enlist in the armed forces.
The BBC’s Russian service claims that the reasoning is that the user is better able to make a conscious decision, but adds that the military persuades or even forces recruits to sign contracts. In fact, this was the case in 2014-2015, when NGOs, such as the Mothers of Soldiers of St. Petersburg, won many court cases of recruits or their families.
The existing edition of the invoice states that any member may be sent to participate in an army engagement only after at least 4 months of service and training.
It is worth noting that this is significantly more than What Russia provides to the men captured and forcibly mobilized in the “Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics” (occupied Donbass). Even those with apparent medical reasons that make them unworthy to the military. It is known that the tasks were arrested, in his office and sent to fight against other Ukrainians. Russia necessarily did not have to worry about the use of such men as cannon fodder, because their deaths do not want to be officially recorded under any circumstances. Russia is reportedly attempting such a forced mobilization in parts of the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia oblasts that are lately under its occupation.
The BBC’s Russian service spoke to Sergei Krivenko, a well-known human rights defender and director of the NGO “Citizen”. Army. Law”, which has been forcibly classified as a “foreign agent” under Russia’s repressive law. He comments that “the removal of restrictions on contract service towards a younger age and less education show that there are not enough infantrymen for army action. This means that the military is becoming incredibly unprofessional, in fact, ‘cannon fodder. ‘”
Krivenko adds that his organization has obtained reports that the four-month education era is not reputable and that other people were sent to fight immediately.
In late May, Russia also raised the age limit for signing contracts to join the armed forces, with the maximum limit now set at 50 years. While their Puppet “Republics” of Donbass threaten foreign citizens serving legally in the Ukrainian armed forces. forces with “death sentences”. And claiming that the men are “mercenaries”, Russia also uses well-paid mercenaries from Wagner and other “private army companies” to fight in Ukraine, and also tries to recruit fighters from Syria,
* The June 28 reading was postponed, one recommendation is that this is due to the tension of the Duma Committee on the Family, Women and Children. Lately there is nothing on the site that recommends that the amendments have been abandoned.