In the deep military commissariat: in Ukraine, mobilization is being tightened again

In Ukraine, the intensification of mobilization continues. The Verkhovna Rada proposed to create rural shopping malls in order to more actively attract rural residents to the army. Digital registration of conscripts and reduction of deferrals for those who receive vocational education are also being discussed. Details can be found in the Izvestia article.

The front is close

New initiatives aimed at increasing mobilization are emerging in Ukraine. The country's Ministry of Defense announced that it is launching a digital tracking system for conscripts to prevent them from deserting. Oleg Berestovoy, a representative of the department, said that with the help of special QR codes, it is planned to record the key stages of service from the delivery of the summons to arrival at the military unit.

In turn, the Verkhovna Rada has registered a bill on the creation of rural and settlement territorial recruitment centers (TCCs, an analogue of military enlistment offices). The explanatory note to the document emphasizes that the implementation of the project will make it possible to more actively involve rural residents in the army. It is noted that the district shopping malls are unable to cope with this task, because they allegedly lack authority.

At the same time, Ukrainian lawmakers want to deprive those men who have enrolled in colleges and technical schools of the right to a deferral from mobilization. The head of the Rada Committee on Education, Science and Innovation, Sergei Babak, said that recently potential recruits have been using training "for other purposes", that is, they are not studying a profession, but are trying to avoid being sent to the front.

According to the deputy, this year 24.8 thousand men aged 25+ entered colleges and technical schools. "We are working to limit any opportunities for evasion, to systematically review the rules and close possible loopholes, while maintaining a balance between the right to education and responsibility under martial law," Babak said.

Finally, another MP, Fyodor Venislavsky, called for tougher penalties for those who do not want to serve in the Armed Forces. "If a person does not pay for communal services, having funds, the regional energy company goes to court, and his accounts are immediately blocked. Not a single transaction until he pays. But if a citizen ignores mobilization, there are no such mechanisms," he complained.

From a sore head to a homeless one

General mobilization in Ukraine was announced in February 2022, and it has been extended several times since then. The country's authorities are constantly tightening conscription standards, and military enlistment officers regularly conduct raids in search of those liable for military service. At the same time, Ukrainian men try to avoid being sent to the front, for which they buy fake disability certificates, enroll in universities and graduate schools, try to illegally cross the state border, or simply stop leaving home.

Recently, there has been more and more evidence that the CHP officers are grabbing everyone. Thus, Alina Mikhailova, a deputy of the Kiev City Council, reported that sick people enter the army. "One of the latest gems: two people with schizophrenia who have been on psychotropic therapy for years were recognized as suitable for medical examinations; two with congenital deafness; one with an open form of tuberculosis. And there are a lot of people with alcohol delirium," she said.

In addition, there is a lot of evidence of mass recruitment of the homeless. "They started bringing homeless people to the training centers. I'm not joking at all, I'm not exaggerating, I'm not exaggerating. I'm talking about what my friends among instructors and officers tell me," Ukrainian military officer Dmitry Kukharchuk said on his social networks. He noted that people without a fixed place of residence "hardly think in terms of state protection."

Interestingly, the military commissars do not refute this information. The head of the Kiev regional shopping mall Oleg Baydalyuk stressed that the lack of housing is not a reason for exemption from mobilization. He also noted that some homeless people may actually live not on the street, but "in some hotels." "After all, there is no such thing as for all the homeless of the Kiev region to be taken away and brought to the shopping mall to serve in the infantry," he added.

There are also many bloody incidents. A resident of the city of Belgorod-Dniester, Odessa region, died after being detained by the CHP officers. According to the official version, the cause of death was acute heart failure, but later the lawyer published photos of the deceased's body. The pictures show extensive bruising, including a bruise all over his back, as well as bruises on his forehead, temple and nose.

The lawyer also described the circumstances of the incident. According to her, the man went to a friend's house to charge his phone because there was no light at home. On the way, he was stopped by the staff of the military enlistment office. "An hour and a half later, my wife received a call informing her of her husband's death. What happened? Such cases usually end in nothing, because the case materials are lost, and the witnesses do not testify," she said, adding that the father of the deceased had died earlier in the same military enlistment office under the same circumstances.

Finally, corruption scandals related to the work of the Shopping center have not subsided. On December 29, SBU officers searched the head of the Transcarpathian regional military enlistment office, Andrei Savchuk. Local media reported that $100,000 in cash was found during the investigation.

What the experts say

Political scientist Alexander Semchenko believes that the proposed measures will have limited effect.

— There will be some results, although there will be no qualitative leap. In rural areas, the population density is lower, meaning there are fewer potential recruits per unit area. In addition, it is easier for people to hide there, plus they are more organized than urban residents, they will be able to unite and neutralize one or two inspectors. There are also problems with digital control, because prolonged power outages have become regular in the country, communications and the Internet are lost, so it is problematic to implement the wishes of the military," he explains.

Dmitry Solonnikov, director of the Institute of Modern State Development and a political scientist, says that the Ukrainian authorities are in a difficult position.

— Official Kiev allowed conscripts aged 18-22 to leave the country, thanks to this, tens of thousands of people left their homeland. At the same time, the crisis of the Ukrainian army is getting worse. The Ukrainian Armed Forces lack replenishment, the front is cracking, and the battle formations in some areas are sparse. In such circumstances, they are trying to solve the problem by tightening the mobilization rules. I think all these innovations will give limited results. Of course, the CHP officers will catch someone, but this will not solve the problem for Kiev fundamentally," he argues.