More than two and a half years into what Russian President [Vladimir Putin](https://www.newsweek.com/topic/vladimir-putin) had hoped would be a days-long war, Russia—and indeed, Ukraine—will need to source fresh manpower for grinding operations, with little hope of an end to the conflict in sight.
According to Ukraine’s numbers, Moscow has sustained more than 665,000 casualties since February 2022, including more than 1,000 soldiers killed or injured between Wednesday and early Thursday.
It is possible that real support for the war in Russia is way less than the Kremlin and state media likes to project.
Hence the huge signing on bonuses. People aren’t signing up out of a sense of duty/right/patriotism, they just are blinded by propaganda that says they are doing well and think they can take the money, do their service, then get out.
If the reports are true, then those signing up are getting older and older. This of course doesn’t matter to the regional governments. They only care they are meeting quotas so they can report to Putin they have met their targets and Putin will be happy, even if most signing up are unfit for service.
Its quite possible that Putin will be forced to enact another round of mobilization, something he knows will cause blowback for him, and I suspect before he does that we will see new laws that will protect Putin from that blowback and also restrict people leaving the country, turning Russia into another North Korea.
Quick take away…. Despite loosing 1000 people per day, Putin still has options. He can easily sustain the war for another year. The west needs to get more serious about closing loopholes in the sanctions and remove restrictions on the use of weapons so Ukraine can do what they need to.
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By Ellie Cook – Security & Defense Reporter:
More than two and a half years into what Russian President [Vladimir Putin](https://www.newsweek.com/topic/vladimir-putin) had hoped would be a days-long war, Russia—and indeed, Ukraine—will need to source fresh manpower for grinding operations, with little hope of an end to the conflict in sight.
According to Ukraine’s numbers, Moscow has sustained more than 665,000 casualties since February 2022, including more than 1,000 soldiers killed or injured between Wednesday and early Thursday.
Read more: [https://www.newsweek.com/vladimir-putin-conscription-casualties-russia-ukraine-mobilization-recruitment-1966148](https://www.newsweek.com/vladimir-putin-conscription-casualties-russia-ukraine-mobilization-recruitment-1966148)
It is possible that real support for the war in Russia is way less than the Kremlin and state media likes to project.
Hence the huge signing on bonuses. People aren’t signing up out of a sense of duty/right/patriotism, they just are blinded by propaganda that says they are doing well and think they can take the money, do their service, then get out.
If the reports are true, then those signing up are getting older and older. This of course doesn’t matter to the regional governments. They only care they are meeting quotas so they can report to Putin they have met their targets and Putin will be happy, even if most signing up are unfit for service.
Its quite possible that Putin will be forced to enact another round of mobilization, something he knows will cause blowback for him, and I suspect before he does that we will see new laws that will protect Putin from that blowback and also restrict people leaving the country, turning Russia into another North Korea.
Quick take away…. Despite loosing 1000 people per day, Putin still has options. He can easily sustain the war for another year. The west needs to get more serious about closing loopholes in the sanctions and remove restrictions on the use of weapons so Ukraine can do what they need to.