The Kremlin calls every spring and autumn men between 18 and 30 years to compulsory military service. The autumn call applies to 2,000 more people compared to autumn 2024.
Those who receive a call are expected to report to a Russian military base for a year of service on Russian soil. It's not about fighting in Ukraine, but there have been reports of called-up men being sent to the front.
The procedure is separate from the mobilization campaigns, where Russian men are called in to participate in the war. However, the likelihood of being sent to war increases for those who have completed military training.
In the spring, 160,000 were called to military service, which means that the total number of called-up individuals for the full year is also expected to land on the highest figure since 2016.
Last year, Putin ordered the armed forces to grow to almost 2.4 million people, of which 1.5 million are to be regular military – an increase of 180,000 new soldiers.
