A Russian draft official explains: In three planned mobilization stages, ‘all the guys will be there’
TV Rain reports that, according to an audio recording made by one of its readers at the Omsk military draft office, mobilization is to be implemented in three planned stages: Sept. 26 to Oct. 10, Oct. 11–25, and Oct. 26 to Nov. 10.
Journalists note that the recording’s authenticity could not be verified. Nevertheless, identical information about three planned “waves” in Russia’s current draft has been reported to TV Rain by another reader, from the Krasnoyarsk region.
The Omsk recording has a female voice — belonging, apparently, to one of the draft officials — explain to a recruit’s relatives that summons will be delivered in three “waves,” and “in those three skips all the guys will be there.”
When asked about how someone currently away on vacation would learn of getting a draft notice, the same official replies: “If he flew away yesterday, and the summons arrives today in his name, he should come back within three days, otherwise there’s criminal liability of up to 15 years in prison.” She then added:
No one will hide, no one will get away, no one will be forgotten — everyone will be found. Do you remember Afghanistan, Chechnya? Did anybody ask where to go? Everyone went horizontal, clearly it was all senseless, “what are we fighting for?” There was Chechnya — they killed all our guys, and now we’re friends with Chechnya, isn’t that right?
Mobilization in Russia
- Russian airline employees summoned less than a day after mobilization declared
- Russia's not-so-partial 'partial mobilization' More details emerge about the Kremlin’s draft
- ‘Prepare to stand up for your convictions’ During mobilization, escaping the draft is a legal problem for many Russians. Here’s a military lawyer’s advice for those who don’t want to fight.
- ‘Everyone knew it was coming’ A dispatch from Russia's Republic of Buryatia, where mobilization is already underway
Under the “partial mobilization” decreed in Russia on September 22, the Russian Defense Ministry plans to draft 300,000 new troops from the current military reserve. It is officially stated that only people with prior army training and experience, or a professional specialization subject to enlistment, will be subject to mobilization. These groups include soldiers and sergeants up to age 35, junior officers up to age 50, and senior officers up to age 55.
According to some news reports, the classified seventh paragraph of the presidential mobilization decree states a goal of up to a million new troops to be drafted. The Russian President’s Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov called this information “a lie.”