Putin signs decree for Spring 2025 conscription of 160,000 citizens

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
31 Mar 2025 19:45

The increase comes as Russia seeks to sustain the momentum of its recent territorial advances and reinforce its military presence amid the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.

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Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with Head of Russian state space corporation Roscosmos, Dmitry Bakanov at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Monday, March 31, 2025 (Vyacheslav Prokofyev, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday approved a decree launching the country's spring 2025 military conscription, which will see 160,000 citizens aged 18 to 30 called up for service. The draft will run from April 1 to July 15, according to a document published on the government's official legal information portal.

Those affected are individuals not currently in the reserves and eligible under Federal Law No. 53-FZ, dated March 28, 1998, which outlines military obligations in Russia.

The 2025 figure reflects a continued rise in conscription numbers. Around 130,000 were drafted in the fall 2023 campaign, while spring 2024 saw over 147,000 conscripts.

The increase comes as Russia seeks to sustain the momentum of its recent territorial gains and bolster its military presence amid the protracted conflict in Ukraine.

The Russian Defense Ministry, however, stated that this conscription drive is not related to operations in Ukraine.

"Conscripts will not be sent to the deployment sites of the units of the Russian armed forces in the new regions of the Russian Federation (Donetsk and Lugansk [Luhansk] people's republics, Kherson and Zaporozhye regions) nor will they participate in the fulfillment of the objectives of the special military operation there," said Vladimir Tsimlyansky, deputy chief for conscription at the Russian General Staff, in a statement released by the Defense Ministry.

The ministry added that conscripts will be discharged on schedule upon completing their mandatory service term.

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