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Electronic conscription notices are now in effect immediately, and their recipients may be barred from leaving the country.
The Kremlin, without a public proclamation, is preparing a new wave of mobilization. Men of conscription age in Russia are trying to leave the country, fearing a repetition of events from autumn 2022 of the year. Instead of a new decree, the Russian authorities are acting through employers. They are collecting data on reservists and introducing electronic summonses, which take effect as soon as they are sent. Politico explains signs of hidden mobilization.
Alexey Tabalov, founder of the human rights organization “School of the Draftee,” said that in recent months there has been an uptick in inquiries for legal assistance from men of draft age. “Mostly from those who are in military reserve,” he said.
According to Tabalov, in recent months the Russian authorities have been actively collecting personal data of reservists through their employers.
“They even inquire about relatives’ addresses,” he said. In his words, this data could be used to locate men who try to evade mobilization if it is announced.
Such men are summoned to military commissariats. There they receive orders indicating the unit they must report to in the event of mobilization.
Tabalov believes this creates conditions for faster and less public conscription.
“They are simply herded, say, 10 buses to some metallurgical plant and take in advance the agreed number of workers right from their workplaces, summoning them by name: Petrov, Ivanov, Sidorov, please board the bus, which then goes to the military base,” he explained.
In March, the Kremlin made electronic summons mandatory for the conscription process. During mobilization 2022 year, paper summons were used, which took effect only after the recipient signed. That bureaucratic loophole then allowed up to a million Russians to leave the country quickly.
Such summons were introduced in 2023 year, and in 2025-year they began to be used nationwide on a voluntary basis. Now such a summons takes effect immediately after online publication. The border service receives the notice, and the recipient is automatically prohibited from leaving the country.
“The authorities learned a lesson from the previous mobilization,” Tabalov noted.
The Kremlin has publicly denied rumors of a new mobilization for several months. Russia’s permanent representative to the UN, Vasily Nebenzya, told reporters: “At present, mass mobilization is not needed, it is not planned and is not expected, as far as I know.”
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov meanwhile said that any talks about mobilization “are being pushed by the Ukrainian authorities.”
Nevertheless, the frontline situation remains difficult for Moscow. Former commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Oleksandr Syrsky, said that Russian losses have for the first time exceeded the number of volunteers willing to join the army.
A lawyer from the human rights organization Russian Peace Plea, which helps men evade military service, also confirmed problems with recruitment. The publication does not name him for security reasons.
“It is becoming increasingly difficult for the Kremlin to recruit new people,” the lawyer said. He added that the “social contract” between the Russian authorities and the population is “noticeably breaking down.”
Russia’s military reserve is mostly composed of men aged up to 55 years, who have completed conscription service. It is mandatory for men from 18 to 30 years, with exceptions for those with health problems or who are studying.
In 2022 year, then-Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu assessed the number of reservists at about 25 million people.
According to Tabalov, “these are precisely the people who are most likely to be mobilized first if mobilization is declared.”
Russia is increasingly unable to recruit people into the army due to large losses on the front. A shortage of volunteers is forcing the authorities to intensify pressure on potential servicemen and look for ways to replenish the army without a new mass mobilization. After mobilization in 2022 year, the Kremlin changed the rules for issuing summons. These summons allow the authorities to locate those liable for military service more quickly and to restrict their ability to leave the country. It was in the same period that hundreds of thousands of men left Russia after mobilization was announced. Mass exodus of Russians has become one reason why the Kremlin now tries to act without a new public proclamation.
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