Russia makes it more difficult to evade conscription: those who don’t report will immediately feel it | Ukraine and Russia war

Currently, the enlistment summons must be delivered in person against a receipt to the respective recruiter. Those who did not want to be recalled made sure they were not at home or at work or fled the country. It wouldn’t make sense now, or even not possible at all.

Due to the new rules, invitation letters will also be allowed to be delivered digitally, via a special portal of the Russian National Service. The invitation is considered received the moment it appears on the recruiter’s personal account.

The additional measure will take effect immediately. Recruits will not be allowed to leave the country from the day the invitation letter is delivered.

Within 24 hours, a second message will be sent through the portal: if the conscript does not report to the military registration and enlistment office within 20 days, a series of further actions will come into force. He will no longer be able to register as a self-employed person or an entrepreneur, he will no longer be able to buy a house or a car, he will no longer be able to get a driver’s license and he will no longer be able to get a loan. Local governments can also cancel benefits and other support measures.

With the new measures, Russia wants to make it easier to recruit men to fight in Ukraine. According to Russia, the new rules should eliminate “deficiencies” that appeared in partial mobilization last year and are an “modernization”. Then tens of thousands of men went into hiding and fled abroad to escape conscription.

However, Russia denies that a new (partial) mobilization is imminent. This is what both Andrei Kartapolov, chairman of the State Duma Defense Committee, and Dmitry Peskov, spokesman for President Vladimir Putin, told Russian state news agencies.

Now that the Duma (lower house) has approved the amendments, they go to the Federation Council (upper house). If he also approves it, then President Putin will sign it and enter into force.