The announcement came barely a day after Russia-controlled regions in east and south Ukraine decided to hold votes on becoming integrated with Russia.
Moscow: Amid several countries asking Russia to stop the war, Russian President Valdimir Putin on Wednesday announced a partial mobilisation in the country. This comes at a time when the war in Ukraine reached close to seven months.
Putin said, “We are talking about partial mobilisation, that is, only citizens who are currently in the reserve will be subject to conscription, and above all, those who served in the armed forces have a certain military specialty and relevant experience.”
The announcement came barely a day after Russia-controlled regions in east and south Ukraine decided to hold votes on becoming integrated with Russia. If Moscow is able to take control of those parts of Ukraine, Russia may step up its efforts on the battlefield.
The referendums will begin on Friday. They were expected to be held since the first month of the war.
Putin’s announcement came days after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi told him this is not an era of war. “Excellency, I know today’s time is not a time for war,” PM Modi had told Putin in Uzbekistan’s Samarkand when the two leaders began their first face-to-face meeting since Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
Replying to Modi, Putin had said he wants to end the conflict in Ukraine as soon as possible and understands that India is concerned about the war. “I know your position on the conflict in Ukraine, your concerns…We will do our best to end this as soon as possible,” Putin had said. The Russia-Ukraine was begun in February.
