By the end of 2024, Russia may announce a new large-scale mobilization to fill losses in the army.
The growing shortage of soldiers for the war against Ukraine is prompting Russia to increase payments to servicemen to avoid a repeat of the unpopular mobilization.
However, there are still no signs that this is working, writes Bloomberg, citing sources in the Kremlin and the Russian Defense Ministry.
The situation may force Russia to begin a new mobilization. Officials may present it as a rotational measure to rest frontline troops.
Russia has hundreds of thousands of troops on the frontlines in eastern and southern Ukraine, where it faces mounting casualties as the fighting has largely stalled. At the same time, the failure so far to repel the Ukrainian attack and regain control of the border has exposed its lack of reserves.
This has prompted the Kremlin to sharply increase payments to persuade more people to join the army. Taking Kiev and other cities is no longer an option for the Russian aggressor because Russia is short of manpower. Putin needs about 500,000 men over the next 12 months to compensate for the attrition and rotation of his troops stationed in Ukraine. The current Russian recruitment strategy, based on paying above-market wages, will not be enough to achieve this.
The Russian Federation has kept the casualties it has suffered since the start of the full-scale invasion a closely guarded secret. According to the General Staff in Kiev, Russia has lost 593,000 of its soldiers (meaning killed and wounded) since the start of the war.