In Russia's First Region, Officials Have Begun Preparing For A Mass Mobilization
2- 19.06.2026, 15:27
- 3,814
Details.
Authorities in the Volgograd Region of the Russian Federation organized training exercises for officials on conducting a mass mobilization. The exercises took place in Volgograd, Volzhsky, and other towns in the region, according to v1.ru. In Volzhsky, a preliminary assembly point was set up for citizens subject to mobilization, along with a station for summons deliverers, a point for receiving and transferring equipment, and a training headquarters for alerting the public and conducting defense operations.
“The goal is to explain how mobilization activities are carried out and to share experience. Preparation for mobilization is a peacetime process; it is ongoing,” explained Oleg Filimonov, head of the Department of Mobilization Preparation and Security and Classification Work at the Volzhsky Administration, regarding the necessity of the exercises. Prior to this, high-ranking Russian officials had, for the first time in a long while, begun to state one after another that there were no plans to announce a new mobilization.
In March, this was mentioned by the Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of the Russian Federation Dmitry Medvedev and the Press Secretary of the President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Peskov. In June, they were joined by Viktor Sobolev, a member of the State Duma’s Defense Committee, and Andrei Klishas, head of the Federation Council’s Committee on State Building and Legislation. “I have never once heard those in charge—and yes, these are interlocutors whom I hold in high regard and consider authoritative—discuss such scenarios. <�…> The course of the special military operation indicates that the armed forces are currently carrying out the tasks assigned to them,” Klishas noted.
The 2022 mobilization caused Vladimir Putin’s approval rating and public support for the war to plummet, and prompted hundreds of thousands of Russians to flee abroad. Following this, Russian authorities began recruiting citizens for the war by offering contracts. According to estimates by the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), Russian forces suffered 425,000 casualties—killed and wounded—in 2025. At the same time, according to official data, 417,000 contract soldiers and volunteers were recruited.
However, based on federal budget expenditures—which include bonuses paid to all those who signed contracts with the Ministry of Defense—only 364,000 people enlisted for the war last year, according to calculations by Janis Klug, an expert at the German Institute for International Security Affairs . His calculations also show that in the first quarter of 2026, the rate of conscript recruitment fell to a two-year low of 70,500 people.
Since last December, the rate of army recruitment has remained below the rate of casualties on the front lines, noted the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS). In addition, the budget deficit is growing, which is attracting contract soldiers with generous bonuses. European officials have not ruled out the possibility that the Kremlin could announce a new mobilization after the State Duma elections in September if heavy casualties on the Ukrainian front continue.
Bank's name: Bank Millennium S.A.
Address: ul. Stanislawa Zaryna, 2A, 02-593, Warszawa
IBAN: PL97116022020000000216711123
SWIFT: BIGBPLPW
Name of the account holder: Fundacja “KARTA ‘97”
Purpose/title of payment: Donation for statuary aims
You can contact us by the e-mail charter97@gmail.com
