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Automatically translated version. May contain inaccuracies compared to the original.
In the temporarily occupied territories, Russia 21 September is expanding the network of "BARS" formations, which recruit fighters directly from the local population. Service in them is increasingly being offered to conscription-age men as an alternative to regular conscript service.
In occupied Donetsk, recruitment continues for "BARS-DPR", according to the Center for the Study of Occupation. Formally this is a volunteer formation to counter UAVs and guard critical infrastructure, and candidates are offered a one-year contract, service within the region, and payments from 209 thousand rubles per month. But the occupation authorities have begun to directly target recruitment at citizens of conscription age, offering service in "BARS-DPR" as an alternative to mandatory military service.
The recruitment campaign also covers Mariupol — recruitment is promoted through local channels, while the military enlistment office is simultaneously conducting contract staffing, including for unmanned systems units. A similar model operates in other seized territories: in Zaporizhzhia recruitment for "BARS-Zaporozhye" continues with contracts for 6, 8, or 12 months, and in Kherson a "BARS-Kherson" has already been formed, which is being used to create mobile UAV countermeasure groups.
At the same time, the population of the occupied territories is being integrated into the all-Russian system of military registration and conscription. In occupied Donetsk in 2026 there are draft commissions operating for men born in 1996–2008, and a system of mobilization commissions is maintained separately.
The next level of this system is preparing future human resources among children. In Melitopol this school year they opened 11 Rosgvardiya specialized classes, from first through eleventh grade, covering more than 200 children. In Donetsk the Rosgvardiya is working with cadet classes, and in Mariupol there are Yunarmiya and specialized Yunarmiya classes.
An entire recruitment system is being formed on the occupied lands
As a result, the occupied territories are not seeing a single separate recruitment mechanism, but an entire system: military training for children, registering the population for military service, mandatory conscription, contract recruitment, and local BARS formations. The BARS model is particularly indicative — it allows Russia to involve the population of the occupied territories in carrying out military tasks without a separate mobilization campaign, formally keeping people within a "voluntary" contract mechanism.
This model fits into the Kremlin's broader strategy for maintaining control over the captured territories. The creation of children's military-patriotic classes, as well as recruitment into BARS, works to create a Moscow-loyal generation and to prepare a future mobilization resource that the occupation authorities are trying to legitimize through formally voluntary structures.
Previously, Informator reported that Russia plans to build a super-colony for 2,5 thousand prisoners in the occupied Kherson region — a major facility intended to last for decades, which indicates the Kremlin's long-term plans to retain control of the seized lands. We also reported that in the occupied territories Russia held "elections" under the supervision of armed personnel — videos appeared online showing voting conducted under the control of Russian security forces, despite Ukraine and the international community not recognizing the legitimacy of such procedures.
Document: PDF proof of the original version of the news item "Від Юнармії до Барс - як Росія перетворює ТОТ на джерело людського ресурсу для своєї військової системи". It records the publication content at the moment of the first scan, the preservation date and the source: Informator.
