Mobilization in Russia for November 21-22, volunteer summary

[Prime Minister of Russia] Mikhail Mishustin announced an approval of targets to meet the needs of the army in the "special military operation" zone. The government also determined the list of the federal departments that can make government purchases for the needs of the “special operation” under a simplified procedure with only one supplier.

The “Council of Mothers” of the mobilized demanded a personal meeting from Putin. According to the Vedomosti business daily, the president decided to meet with the mothers of the mobilized on November 27. The "Council of Mothers and Wives" urged Russians to consider the meeting fake if activists are not invited to it. As it became known later, representatives of the “Council of Mothers and Wives” and the “Committee of Soldiers’ Mothers” were not invited to the meeting between Putin and the relatives of the mobilized, which was announced by Russian President’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov.

Voyenny Ombudsmen (Military Ombudsman) Telegram channel posted an internal RossGuard [militarized police agency] memo. The memo says that the mobilization process that was first announced on September 21, has not ended. Active (contracted) military personnel should not expect a discharge. "The relevant decree is still active, has not been paused in any way and the "partial" mobilization is not over". The Telegram channel thinks that it is possible to secure a discharge through the court system, only if one's contract had expired before September 21, 2022. However, such cases are rare.

Sources close to the Russian Army HQ have told the Important Stories media outlet that there is a discussion within the power structure to classify those conscripts who do not sign a contract with the army (after their term of conscription ends) and wish to be discharged from the service, as qualified reserves eligible for further "partial" mobilization and transfer to the front lines.

The members of Karelia [Russia’s constituent republic] legislature demanded that Putin sign an official decree to end mobilization. The Yabloko faction members reminded the parliament that Putin's and Shoigu's public statements about the end of the mobilization have no legitimacy.

Conscripts that were detained in the Belgorod region for their refusal to follow orders were questioned, released and returned to base. The draftees Yurii Degtyaryov and Ivan Selivanov, who were apprehended right on the parade ground, were then released after questioning and sent to the Voronezh base, after they signed a form requiring them to see an investigator afterwards. Mr Degtyaryov told this himself to Verstka news.

Naberezhnye Chelny authorities are planning to allocate 500 million rubles to support conscripts and their families. During October and November, they have already allocated 87 million and 272 thousand rubles for the purpose. In the next six months, the city will grant a further 500 to 600 million. "We'll take the shirt off our back but never leave our guys behind",   mayor Nail Megdeev said.

One third of all money, which was allocated in support of conscripts in Buryatia, has been spent to purchase cigarettes. It has turned out to be the biggest cost center. The fund collection group admin from the Tunkinsky district Anastasia Sorokovikova said that since September 23 up until November 18, she has collected 487 940 rubles. Of that she had spent a minimum of 120 000 on cigarettes. Medical supplies proved to be the second largest spending item.

Novaya Gazeta.Evropa media outlet based on open source data counted how many mobilized fathers were killed in the war. In total, 217 men who received draft notes have been killed since September 21. On average, mobilized soldiers are killed 23.5 days after leaving home. Children in 91 families became orphans. A total of 159 children lost their fathers as a result of mobilization.

Some of the mobilized soldiers from the Voronezh region, who are assigned to the 252nd Regiment, were returned to Russia and brought to a military base in the town of Boguchar. A relative of one of the servicemen told the Verstka media outlet the story on condition of anonymity. The woman also added that her relative did not refuse to fight, but only demanded adequate equipment and training.

More than 20 draftees from Russia’s constituent republic of Mordovia allegedly escaped from a training center in Ulyanovsk. The servicemen did not return to the training center after being dismissed to celebrate National Unity Day. Among these soldiers was a cancer patient, who is now returned to the center.

An individual with a residence registration in another region was mobilized in Kazan, Tatarstan. Yuri Klimin is assigned to a military commissariat [draft office] in the town of Volzhsk, Mari El. He worked in Kazan, but did not register with the local commissariat. On October 29, on his day off, he was called to work and taken to the military commissariat under threats of criminal prosecution. On November 20, Klimin was sent to the front. The man, however, is entitled to an exemption from military service for a year because he is the sole caretaker for his elderly mother. He also is diagnosed with a gastric ulcer and must take prescription medications. His lawyer filed a complaint with the prosecutor's office.

In the past two months, parents of students at School No.30 in Irkutsk have tried to prevent science teacher Ilya Legkodimov, 35, from being sent to the "special operation". He was mobilized on September 29, and from that time Legkodimov has undergone military training in the town of Yurga, Kemerovo region. Despite his parents' objections, on November 27, he will be deployed to a combat zone.

A draftee from the Altai region with the call sign "Yandex" complained about poor living conditions, and then recorded an apology video. At first, the man stated that he had to buy a uniform and gear at his own expense. He also said that training of mobilized soldiers had not been adequately organized. Then the authorities of the Altai region published a video in which Yandex apologized for the complaints and thanked the command for "personal involvement". A mobilized individual from the Saratov region complained to his family that his fellow soldiers wanted to drown him in a toilet bowl. After that, the man ended up in a mental health facility.

A volunteer soldier told the 74.RU publication how the conscripts at a training camp near Chebarkul live and prepare for the “special operation.” According to him, what the media sees is a “staged show” that does not reflect how things really are. The conscript training center was put up in 12 days and, according to the authorities, can house over a thousand men. The volunteer says that by mid-November, the number of the mobilized soldiers at the camp reached 6500 and opines that the camp was not prepared to handle such a number of trainees.

The Russian Ministry of Defense continues to publish footage of conscripts undergoing training. A clip from the Kaliningrad Region shows military exercises where servicemen  are shooting at the simulated enemy at day- and night-time under challenging weather conditions. Mobilized soldiers from South Urals continue learning the arts of war at the training grounds near Chebarkul. Combat training of the UAV control units staffed with the mobilized soldiers is carried out  in the rearward zone of the “special operation.” Mobilized reconnaissance units conducted artillery fire adjustment exercises near Orenburg. In Buryatia, conscripts are sharpening their driving skills and learning how to shoot from tanks.

The Pravozaschitnik (Rights Defender) civil organization in Khabarovsk is conducting initial military training courses. On November 20, military instructors conducted a practice session where participants acquired tactical medicine skills, listened to a lecture on how to assemble their gear, tried on body armor, and learned how to rapidly deploy a group in case of an ambush. 35 people attended the session. In total, 172 people are enrolled in the training.

On November 19, a wall-to-wall-style brawl between mobilized men and locals occurred at the Grabli [Rake] cafe in the town of Yurga, Kemerovo region. About ten men participated in the brawl. Most of them have been identified. One of the mobilized had to be hospitalized. The cause of the brawl isn’t known yet.

In the last 24 hours, 537 families applied to the State Duma [Russian Parliament] delegate from Sverdlovsk region Maksim Ivanov complaining that payments to the mobilized have not been made. Ivanov wrote that the majority of the complaints came from the Sverdlovsk region. Let us recall that just yesterday, his list contained only 125 complaints.