Dmitry Medvedev, former president and current deputy chairman of the Security Council of Russia, stated that 185,000 new recruits have joined the Russian army as contract soldiers since January. The surge in recruitment aims to patch losses in Ukraine.
Russia planned to boost its armed forces by 30% to 1.5 million combat personnel last year. Most Russian cities feature posters encouraging citizens to join the armed forces as contract soldiers. Since the brief Wagner uprising in late June, almost 10,000 individuals have signed up. Medvedev assured that Russian factories are working 24/7 to supply troops in Ukraine. He also suggested that all useful assets seized from criminals should be contributed to the Russian military. After the “partial mobilization” of 300,000 reservists last September which caused many to flee the country, Putin announced there is no need for further mobilization in the future.
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