Senior Russian officials have proposed a new law that would remove age restrictions for contract soldiers, another sign that the country is facing a shortage of infantry to continue its offensive in Ukraine.
Two members of the ruling United Russia party, who introduced the law, said the move would allow the military to use the skills of older professionals.
“The use of high-precision weapons, the operation of weapons and military equipment requires highly professional specialists. Experience shows that they become such in 40-45 years “, it says.
Currently, Russians aged 18-40 and foreigners aged 18-30 can sign their first contract with the army.
Lawmakers added that the proposed legislation will also facilitate the recruitment of civilian medics, engineers and specialists in operations and communications.
Military experts say Russia is facing unsustainable losses of troops and equipment in Ukraine after a series of military setbacks that forced Moscow to reduce its military targets.
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Russia initially enlisted about 80 percent of its main ground force – 150,000 – in the war in February, according to Western officials. In the past 82 days, he has “suffered losses from a third of the ground forces he has committed”, British military intelligence said last week.
Russia’s military is also facing problems with low morale among its troops, with reports emerging that hundreds of soldiers are reluctant to fight in what Russia calls its “special military operation.”
“Russia lacks enough ground forces with troops under a sustainable rotation agreement. “Troops are running out – they won’t be able to do that for long,” said Rob Lee, a military analyst.
Despite widespread speculation and warnings from Western intelligence, Russian President Vladimir Putin has so far chosen not to order large-scale military service and to officially declare war on Ukraine, possibly fearing the consequences of such measures at home.
Instead, Russian authorities have quietly stepped up their efforts to recruit new contract soldiers.
An investigation by Russia’s BBC service has revealed that Russia’s Defense Ministry has filled job sites with job vacancies, offering inexperienced people opportunities to join the military on lucrative short-term contracts. Some large state-owned companies have received letters urging them to enlist in the army.
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The Guardian also reported earlier that authorities in the pro-Russian region of Donbass had staged an aggressive mobilization campaign, forcing many men to hide to avoid being sent to the front line.
Separately, on Friday, Putin posthumously awarded former insurgent commander Arseniy Pavlov, also known as Motorola, with the Order of Bravery.
Motorola, a former veteran of the second Chechen war, was one of the first Russians to cross into Ukraine to join the pro-Russian rebel movement in 2014, where he commanded the Sparta Battalion, known as one of the more ruthless and poorly disciplined militias. formation. Motorola had previously boasted that it had killed 15 Ukrainian soldiers. He died in murky circumstances in 2016 from a powerful bomb that was apparently planted in the elevator of his apartment building.
Russia has always denied its role in Donbass, where the war has raged since 2014, despite evidence gathered by journalists and NGOs that Russian troops have been stationed in the region.
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