Putin signs decree to conscript 150,000 Russians for military service

Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on March 31 to conscript 150,000 citizens as part of the regularly occurring spring conscription campaign, Russia's Defense Ministry reported.

Russia conducts two conscription campaigns per year, in spring and fall. All Russian men from 18-30 have one year of mandatory military service, although many find ways to avoid serving. The maximum age for conscripts was raised from 27 to 30 in July 2023.

By law, conscripts mobilized as part of the routine conscription campaign are not allowed to be sent abroad to fight, including in Ukraine. At the same time, the U.K.'s Defense Ministry said in March 2023 that at least hundreds have likely served in Ukraine through "administrative mix-ups" or after being coerced to sign contracts.

The last round of conscription, conducted in September 2023, saw 130,000 men being called up to serve. The campaign included the illegally annexed areas of Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia oblasts.

The U.K. Defense Ministry said on March 30 that Russia is likely recruiting around 30,000 people a month to help bolster its war effort.

With the end of the rigged presidential election, Russia can likely continue to carry out mobilization more openly, said Andrii Yusov, a spokesperson for Ukraine's military intelligence.

Read also: Portrait of the Invader: 2 years of Russian soldiering in Ukraine

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