There have been reports that people with no military service have been issued draft papers for Russia’s partial mobilisation.
This is despite defence minister Sergei Shoigu’s guarantee that only those with special military skills or combat experience would be called up to support the campaign in Ukraine.
Now Russia’s two most senior lawmakers, both close Putin allies, have addressed complaints about the Kremlin’s mobilisation drive, ordering regional officials to get a handle on the situation and quickly solve the “excesses” that have sparked public anger.
Valentina Matviyenko, the chairwoman of Russia’s upper house, the Federation Council, said she was aware of reports of men who should be ineligible for the draft being called up.
“Such excesses are absolutely unacceptable. And, I consider it absolutely right that they are triggering a sharp reaction in society,” she said in a post on the Telegram messaging app.
In a direct message to Russia’s regional governors – who she claimed had “full responsibility” for implementing the call-up – she wrote: “Ensure the implementation of partial mobilisation is carried out in full and absolute compliance with the outlined criteria. Without a single mistake.”
Meanwhile, Vyacheslav Volodin, who is the speaker of Russia’s lower chamber, the State Duma, also expressed concern in a separate post. “Complaints are being received,” he said.
“If a mistake is made, it is necessary to correct it… Authorities at every level should understand their responsibilities.”
Some 300,000 Russians will called up to serve in the mobilisation campaign, say officials. The Kremlin has twice denied it plans to draft more than one million, following two separate reports in independent Russian media outlets.
Source: Skynews