Mobilization in Russia for Jan. 16-19, 2025 CIT Volunteer Summary

Army Recruitment and Military Service Advertising

Russia’s constituent Republic of Tatarstan, authorities have increased the reward for recruiting contract soldiers to fight in the war to 150,000 rubles [$1,460] per recruit. A post announcing the raise claims that "recruitment is ongoing in all regions of Russia, and payments are made on the day the contract is signed." Regional authorities introduced the reward in the summer of 2024 at 50,000 rubles [$490] and raised it to 100,000 rubles [$980] a few days later.

The Idite Lesom! [Flee through the woods/Get lost you all] Telegram channel reminds IT specialists that, between Jan. 21 and Feb. 5, they can submit an application for a draft deferral from the spring regular conscription. The channel also details who is eligible and how to apply.

Mobilized Soldiers, Volunteer Fighters and Contract Soldiers

Based on open sources, Mediazona [independent Russian media outlet] and BBC News Russian, together with volunteers, have verified the names of 88,726 Russian fighters killed in Ukraine, including 10,367 mobilized soldiers. Over the past week, the list has grown by 671 servicemen.

The cause of death of Vladislav Belonogov, a conscript soldier from Krasnoyarsk who died in a military unit in the Moscow region, has been identified as cerebral edema and meningococcemia. Vladislav's family noted that their appeals to the Military Prosecutor's Office and the military investigation department of the Investigative Committee have not received a response.

The authorities of the Sakhalin region have explained their decision to abstain from posting information regarding the region's residents killed in the war. According to the officials, the Ministry of Defense advised them to stop publishing information about the deceased, citing the need to protect their families from alleged Ukrainian intelligence "monitoring these posts and using them for their purposes."

State Duma member Nina Ostanina has requested the Military Prosecutor's Office to take control of a case involving a serviceman from the Leningrad region who complained about extortion by the command of the 1009th Regiment. In her appeal, Ostanina stated that the actions of "certain officials" who demanded money from the soldier, discredit the Russian army. She also emphasized that the soldier’s alleged beating and threats should not go unnoticed by the authorities. The soldier’s wife told the Ostorozhno, Novosti [Beware the News] Telegram channel that after the information was publicized, she was contacted by a representative of Tatyana Moskalkova, Russia's Commissioner for Human Rights. Meanwhile, the serviceman was called by an investigator who reportedly admitted that he "did not expect such lawlessness" to occur on the territory of the military unit. A medical commission also visited the soldier, collected all relevant documents, and is reportedly considering his potential demobilization.

Servicemen of the Storm unit of the 40th Naval Infantry Brigade have reported cases of beatings and extortion by their commanders. According to volunteers, in early December, the commanders confiscated 200,000 rubles [$1,950] in cash and an additional 400,000 rubles [$3,900] via bank transfer from a 40-year-old serviceman, allegedly for consuming alcohol. On Dec. 31, they assaulted him and forced him to sign a statement agreeing to pay another 500,000 rubles [$4,880]. All payments were reportedly made to the account of the commander’s sister. The volunteers further claim that one of the commanders demanded the serviceman’s apartment and threatened him with murder. The man managed to escape and was declared wanted a few days later. Although the brigade's assistant commander for political affairs initially promised to investigate, she later labeled the serviceman a "thief and a liar." On Jan. 15, the serviceman was detained by military police and returned to his unit. He has not been in contact since. Volunteers also reported that commanders had extorted money from two other servicemen: one transferred 3 million rubles [$29,300], and the other 400,000 rubles [$3,900].

A video has emerged showing Russian military police beating and torturing wounded soldiers with electricity, allegedly to compel them to return to the forward positions. According to pro-military Telegram channels, the footage was filmed in the city of Kyzyl, Russia's constituent republic of Tyva, home to the 55th Motorized Rifle Brigade. The video depicts a military police officer brutally attacking soldiers from an assault unit with a baton and a stun gun. The officer is heard insulting the soldiers, demanding they take off their clothes, and threatening them with sexual violence. Both soldiers had previously been wounded; one of them needs a cane to walk. The victims are reportedly in serious condition, with one suffering a broken spine as a result of the assault. An investigation is reportedly underway and the authorities are considering filing criminal charges.

Separately, Svetlana Ivanova, a resident of the Tyumen region, struggles to bring her husband, Viktor, home from the war. Viktor signed a contract with the Ministry of Defense in late November 2023. Within a month, he sustained a leg injury. Despite this, Svetlana claims he was sent back to the battlefield while still using crutches. After months of treatment in various hospitals, Viktor returned to his unit in Samara for a military medical board evaluation. However, during a formation, an officer confiscated his crutches. On Dec. 18, Viktor was deployed back to the forward positions.

Aleksandr Barlet, who was shot by employees of the military commandant's office in Donetsk, lost a kidney. Barlet told the Astra Telegram channel that this occurred due to a misdiagnosis made at Hospital No. 6 in Donetsk.

Sentences, Legal Proceedings and Incidents

A participant in the war with Ukraine who assaulted an Aeroflot employee at Sheremetyevo Airport was released the same day without any charges. His ticket was changed to another flight to Vladivostok free of charge, and he is already home. Following the incident, the injured employee, who required medical assistance, and airport staff were asked to keep quiet about what happened.

A court in Perm has sentenced Aleksey Golovin, a pensioner of Rosgvardia [the Russian National Guard] and a participant in the war with Ukraine, to 17 years in a maximum security penal colony for killing investigator Yevgeny Seredkin, the former husband of his wife Elena, with an axe. According to investigators, Golovin struck Seredkin 81 times, then called the emergency number 112, reported the murder, waited for the police to arrive and wrote a confession. Golovin was charged with murder with extreme brutality. In December, the trial was temporarily suspended, as it was reported that Golovin had been recruited for the war. However, the contract was ultimately not signed, his deployment to the frontline was canceled and the trial resumed.

In the Leningrad region, a soldier who went AWOL has been detained. According to the case materials, the 30-year-old man was mobilized but fled his unit in May 2023. As reported by Fontanka [pro-Russian media outlet of the Leningrad region], the man had been convicted three times for driving under the influence.

A court in the Rostov region sentenced contract soldier Ilya Lunin to three years on probation on charges of fraud for attempting to extort money from a subordinate in exchange for allegedly avoiding punishment for refusing to go to the frontline. In March 2024, the soldier refused to carry out combat duties, citing deteriorating health. Lunin offered to assist for 200,000 rubles [$1,950]. The soldier managed to transfer only part of the sum and subsequently contacted the Federal Security Service (FSB), suspecting deception. He transferred the remaining money in June under the supervision of law enforcement officers. Ultimately, the soldier was found not guilty of failing to obey orders, as it was determined that he did require medical assistance. Lunin was charged with fraud rather than corruption, as he had no actual influence over the decision regarding the soldier’s refusal to be sent to the frontline.

A court in Vyborg has arrested four people in connection with a fire at the Vyborgsky Rubezh [Vyborg Frontier] military support fund that took place on Jan. 9. They are accused of committing an act of terror. Earlier reports mentioned two detainees, one of whom—an eighth-grade student—was later released.

A military court in Rostov-on-Don has sentenced Leon Darshte, a resident of Gulkevichi in the Krasnodar region, to 13 years in prison on charges of multiple arson incidents and preparing an explosion at a police station. Darshte, who was 18 years old at the time, was arrested in December 2022 after setting fire to a banner displaying the militaristic slogan "Svoikh ne brosayem" [We don't abandon our own]. He was later accused of setting fire to a transformer along the railway line between the city of Armavir and the town of Kurganinsk in an attempt to disrupt military vehicle deliveries and to protest against Russia's "special military operation." He was also charged with several counts of arson motivated by national hatred. As a result, Darshte was tried on charges of deliberate property damage, sabotage, preparing an act of terror, and illegal possession of explosives. The court's statement did not mention the arson of the banner.

In the annexed city of Sevastopol, the FSB detained a local resident for allegedly gathering information about air defense systems and the navy for Ukrainian military intelligence. He has been charged with treason.

In a similar case, Anastasia Ivakhnenko, a 21-year-old woman, was also charged with arson for allegedly setting fire to a cell tower. Law enforcement officers claim Ivakhnenko organized the arson "for selfish and ideological reasons," while she asserts that the charges against her were based on the testimony of her former boyfriend and were fabricated by the FSB. Ivakhnenko has been in pre-trial detention since Aug. 8 of last year.

A resident of Khabarovsk has been detained on charges of cooperation on a confidential basis with a foreign state, an international organization, or a foreign entity, knowingly acting against Russia's security. According to the FSB, the woman established contact with representatives of Ukrainian intelligence. Investigators claim she gathered information about law enforcement personnel as well as civilian and military infrastructure.

It was also reported that a court in Buryatia [Russia's constituent republic] sentenced a local man to 13 years in a penal colony on charges of treason. The sentence was handed down in October last year. The defendant appealed the decision, but the court upheld the original sentence. According to investigators, in 2024, the defendant acted on orders from Ukrainian intelligence services in a combat zone. He allegedly attempted to persuade Russian soldiers to defect to the Armed Forces of Ukraine and encouraged them to voluntarily surrender as prisoners of war.

Assistance

In Udmurtia [Russia’s constituent republic], war participants are reportedly waiting for days in round-the-clock lines to see a surgeon at a Ministry of Defense hospital, according to the relatives of servicemen. Both wounded soldiers in need of treatment and servicemen who need a military medical board evaluation are waiting. The hospital has only one surgeon, who can treat a maximum of five patients per day, despite the fact that some twenty people arrive daily for appointments.

The government of the Saratov region hasasked restaurant owners to contribute to payments to war veterans. The request of Deputy Prime Minister of the region Aleksey Nikitin was posted in the restaurant owners' chat room by the owner of one of the establishments, Elena Pavlova-Rusinova. Screenshots of the correspondence have been published by the Soykaperesmeshnitsa [Mockingjay] Telegram channel.

Longreads

On the anniversary of the protests in Baymak, Bashkortostan [Russia's constituent republic], the Idel.Realii [part of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty] online media outlet reconstructed the events of that day based on the materials of the criminal case and the memories of eyewitnesses.

Since the start of the full-scale Russian invasion, 108 Russian officials and deputies have said they want to go to war, as counted by Novaya Gazeta Europe [European edition of the independent Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta]. Of these, 70 went to the frontline voluntarily, and another 18 went because of criminal cases brought against them. 20 officials later changed their minds about going to war. Of the 70 who voluntarily joined the war effort, at least 49 did not sign full military contracts, but joined "volunteer units," which allows them to return from the frontline after a few months.