Russia Makes It Easier to Draft Young Men into the Army
The Russian government has approved new rules to make it easier for young men to join the army. The changes were made by Deputy Defense Minister Andrey Kartapolov.
One of the main goals of these reforms is to improve how conscription works. This means that people who were previously not allowed to serve in the military due to illness or other reasons can be drafted into service more easily.
In Russia, young men are called up for military duty twice a year, in spring and fall. They must do this if they are between 18 and 27 years old. The new rules also change how draft commissions work. Instead of having multiple commissions in big cities, there will now be just one commission in these areas.
These changes come after Russia’s recent conscription campaigns. In the fall of last year, a record number of people were drafted into the military – 133,000. A similar number was drafted in the spring campaign.
Russia needs more soldiers because it has been losing many troops in its war against Ukraine. The Ukrainian government says that Russia has lost over 831,000 troops since starting this war.
Some Russian civilians have joined the army to fight in Ukraine by offering them money or pardoning their crimes. However, after a previous call-up of civilians led to many Russians leaving the country, President Vladimir Putin decided not to do this again.
