Mobilization in Russia for Jan. 15-18, 2026 CIT Volunteer Summary

Authorities and Legislation

Dmitry Medvedev, Deputy Chairman of Russia’s Security Council, announced that 422,704 people signed contracts with the Ministry of Defense in 2025, while another 32,000 joined 'volunteer units." On Dec. 24, 2025, however, he claimed that approximately 417,000 recruits had signed contracts for the year and more than 36,000 had enlisted in "volunteer units." For comparison, federal budget data indicates that between 374,200 and 407,200 personnel signed contracts in 2024, up from 345,400 in 2023.

Army Recruitment

In Dagestan [Russia’s constituent republic], Shamil Khadulaev, a member of the Public Monitoring Commission, reported that seven individuals convicted in connection with the antisemitic pogrom at Makhachkala airport on Oct. 29, 2023, had signed military contracts and departed for the war. He added that one of the men, Mukhammad-Said Murtuzaliev, a father of three, died in summer 2025.

Mobilized Soldiers, Contract Soldiers and Conscripts

Based on open sources, Mediazona [independent Russian media outlet] and BBC News Russian, together with volunteers, have verified the names of 163,606 Russian fighters killed in Ukraine, including 16,650 mobilized soldiers. Over the past three weeks, the list has grown by 5,463 soldiers, 369 of whom were mobilized.

Reports of torture and beatings of servicemen at the home base of the 143rd Motorized Rifle Regiment in the village of Sergeyevka, Ussuriysk region, have led to military investigators opening a criminal case for hazing. This was reported by Maksim Chikhunov, the lawyer who first revealed the events in the unit, including soldiers being declared AWOL, as well as disabled people and combat veterans in need of medical treatment, including amputees, being held for extended periods in locked cages and subjected to humiliation, beaten, tied up, and wrapped in stretch film, and for any disobedience, deployed to a combat zone.

A 41-year-old resident of the Krasnoyarsk region, Anton Simonenko, who suffers from a severe form of psoriasis and moves with the aid of a cane, was sent to a Storm-Z assault unit despite a military medical board’s conclusion that he required inpatient treatment. In October 2025, he recorded an appeal in which he said that after signing a contract in 2023, he was sent to the frontline without undergoing a medical board at all. Due to a worsening of his condition, Simonenko required treatment, but the command kept him at a military unit in Donetsk, claiming that his hospitalization documents were forged. After the case became public, Simonenko was placed in the reserve and hospitalized; however, the very next day he and about 20 other servicemen who were awaiting a medical evaluation board and a medical evacuation train were forcibly sent to an assault detachment of the 98th Regiment and are reportedly being prepared for combat deployment.

In the town of Khrestivka in the occupied part of the Donetsk region, unknown individuals abducted a local resident, Aleksandr Kuropyatnikov, who had previously deserted. He was mobilized into the "DPR People’s Militia" in February 2022 directly from the mine where he worked. According to his wife, during the New Year holidays six men wearing masks and carrying pistols broke into their home and, without identifying themselves or presenting any documents, took the man away. After the abduction, Kuropyatnikov was sent to the 5th Motorized Rifle Brigade. His wife called the police, but she was denied a search for her husband and the opening of a criminal case.

Sentences, Legal Proceedings and Incidents

According to the Investigative Committee, the older brother of 17-year-old Mikhail Paramonov—who killed four teenagers in the town of Baykalsk, Irkutsk region, in May 2025 —had fought in the war and is now facing criminal charges. He is accused of sexualized violence against minors and of going AWOL. Earlier, a separate case was opened against him for involving minors in drinking alcohol, as he bought alcohol for the party where the tragedy took place.

In Saint Petersburg, serviceman Vadim Kabanov was sentenced to four years in a penal colony on charges of armed robbery. On Feb. 17 of last year, while intoxicated, he robbed a flower shop, threatening a 20-year-old sales clerk with a pistol-shaped lighter. He took about 15,000 rubles [$190] in cash, as well as several bouquets worth another 18,000 rubles [$228], which he handed out to women he met on the street. He kept the cash for himself. Kabanov had previously been convicted in 2014 and sentenced to 12 years in prison for murder, theft, and robbery. He likely enlisted to fight on the frontline while serving that sentence.

In the Novosibirsk region, law enforcement officers detained a group of teenagers and young adults suspected of sabotage. A 22-year-old resident of Novosibirsk is accused of setting fire to a cell tower and a transformer substation on Dec. 27. Seven others, aged between 15 and 24, were also detained and accused of carrying out arson attacks on communications infrastructure in exchange for money received via messaging apps. All of the suspects were placed in pretrial detention.

In Sevastopol, a 19-year-old man was detained on suspicion of carrying out a terrorist attack. Law enforcement officials believe he set fire to a battery cabinet in the settlement of Inkerman and a transformer substation in one of Sevastopol’s districts. The young man allegedly fell under the influence of phone scammers, after which he traveled to the city to conduct "reconnaissance of transportation infrastructure and fuel and energy facilities." The detainee’s name has not been disclosed.

In Murmansk, an 18-year-old university student has been placed in a pretrial detention center on suspicion of preparing an act of terror. Authorities accuse her of setting fire to a military conscription office. In a video released by law enforcement, the woman says she was a victim of fraud: scammers allegedly gained access to her account on the Gosuslugi public services portal and, posing as investigators, threatened her with criminal prosecution. According to the Federal Security Service (FSB), the scammers referred to the conscription office as a "phone-scam call center" and sent the woman money so she could carry out the arson. The detainee’s name and other details of the case have not been disclosed.

Separately, a case involving a 15-year-old boy accused of an act of terror in the city of Cheboksary has been filed with the Central District Military Court. Investigators say that on July 25, 2025, the teenager set fire to two cars in one part of the city, at least one of which belonged to a law enforcement officer. Authorities claim the boy acted on instructions from scammers who initially contacted him while posing as a girl and later threatened that geolocation data he had sent would be used by Ukrainian forces to carry out strikes on the city.

A case has also reached the courts involving Sofia Lepyoshkina, a 25-year-old resident of Serpukhov in the Moscow region, who is accused of assisting terrorism, justifying terrorism, and participating in the activities of a terrorist organization. Investigators say that in April 2024 she used her Instagram account to call on people to join the Freedom of Russia Legion and sent the message to random users. A few days later, she allegedly left a pro-Freedom of Russia Legion inscription near a bus stop in the city. In addition, authorities claim that the woman searched her phone for the coordinates of local military-political work units, filled out an application to join the Freedom of Russia Legion, and photographed a facility involved in the production and repair of military vehicles. On Sept. 19, 2024, Lepyoshkina was detained and placed in a pre-trial detention center. She pleaded guilty and said that the Freedom of Russia Legion had misled her.

A 37-year-old gas service employee from Belgorod, Aleksandr Chebotaryov, was sentenced to 21 years in a penal colony on charges of treason, participation in the activities of a terrorist organization, and smuggling explosives and munitions. Investigators allege that in 2024 he contacted representatives of the Freedom of Russia Legion and agreed to cooperate with them in exchange for money. According to the investigation, he later retrieved firearm components from a cache in the Bryansk region, traveled to Moscow in April to obtain "information about sites of interest to the Ukrainian side," and then hid weapons and explosives in his garage. Chebotaryov was detained in August 2024. He said he had been misled and believed the packages he collected contained drugs.

Assistance

Authorities in the Vladimir region have expanded support measures for war participants starting businesses. Beginning Jan. 1, 2026, veterans discharged from service who register as individual entrepreneurs will be eligible for a one-time payment of 150,000 rubles [$1,920], up from 100,000 [$1,280] rubles previously. Veterans were also added to the list of preferential categories for temporary employment, making them eligible for monthly supplements of up to 12,000 rubles [$150], several times higher than the region’s minimum unemployment benefit.

Longreads

The Vyorstka media outlet published the story of a deserter who fled the army 20 years ago, lived under various names for years, but was detained in 2022 and sent to the frontline.

Mediazona reports on changes in the Russian police over four years of war.

The Insider [independent Russian investigative media outlet] released an investigation into how people in Russia are prosecuted on charges of espionage, terrorism and treason.