Published 23 September 2022 at 14.14
Foreign. Russia lacks sufficient manpower for the protracted war that the invasion of Ukraine has led to. Therefore, a general mobilization is a logical step forward for President Vladimir Putin, according to an expert.
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The Ukrainian offensive in Kharkiv exposed weaknesses on the Russian side, mainly the lack of manpower and well-trained soldiers, according to Ilmari Käihkö, docent at the Defense Academy.
– In the Kharkiv region, the Russian defense lines were too thin, says Käihkö to Swedish Yle.
Ukraine quickly banned men of military age from leaving the country and can therefore recruit new soldiers easily. Russia, for its part, has used contract soldiers, although conscripts were mistakenly sent to the war at the beginning of the invasion.
After the retreat in Kharkiv, the more hard-line opposition in Russia called for a general mobilization. Shortly afterwards came the announcement of a partially general one, where 300,000 men are called up in a first step.
It is the first time since the Second World War that Russia has carried out a general mobilization of soldiers.
– But Russia must escalate somehow. Otherwise, the war will go badly for them, says Käihkö to Yle.