Cornered Russia, carrot and stick at the same time
The military discipline continues and the threat of using nuclear weapons continues
Concentration of forced conscription of poor minorities
Consolation measures such as citizenship and debt repayment deferral
Voting fraudulent elections in the occupied territories of Russia
Open the ballot in the transparent box and vote
EU to discuss accepting Russian escapees
▲ Clearly visible ballot box for ‘for-disagree’
A resident puts a paper into a ballot box in Mariupol, Donetsk Province, one of four locations, during a referendum for ‘incorporation of Russian territory’ in four Russian-occupied regions of Ukraine, on the 24th (local time). In Russia, the ballot paper cannot be folded in half so that the contents of the vote can be seen, and the ballot box is made of transparent plastic.
Mariupol Tas Yonhap News
As protests against the mobilization of 300,000 reservists to be sent to Ukraine’s battlefields spread across Russia day after day, President Vladimir Putin is accelerating the forced conscription by issuing a ‘carrot’ (an inducement to enlistment) and a ‘whip’ (a punishment rule) at the same time. In addition, it seems to increase the pressure on Ukraine and the West, saying that it will hold discipline with the hardening of the military’s leadership inside, and that it will “use nuclear weapons” outside.
According to CNN and the New York Times (NYT) on the 24th (local time), more than 700 protesters have been arrested for taking part in protests against the mobilization order in 32 regions across Russia. Earlier, on the 21st, more than 1,300 people were arrested in 38 regions. AFP reported that she witnessed a woman protester arrested by police in Moscow shouting: “We are not ‘bullshit'”.
In particular, contrary to the government’s original announcement that it would mobilize 300,000 people, the number of people mobilized is higher, and the opposition is getting stronger because the standards are arbitrary and discriminatory.
For example, the Russian Ministry of Defense announced on the 23rd that it would exclude information and communication technology (ICT), financial experts, and state-run journalists from conscription. It is pointed out that high-education and high-income earners are excluded from conscription, and mobilization orders are being concentrated on ethnic minorities in remote and poor regions such as Siberia.
There are many cases in which college students or older people are not mobilized, but they are actually mobilized. Independent Russian media Novaya Gazeta and Meduzha predicted that 1.2 million people would be mobilized. Margarita Simonian, editor-in-chief of Russian state broadcaster Russia Today, was furious on Telegram, saying, “It has been announced that civilians can be recruited up to the age of 35, but the convocation documents are also going to those in their 40s.”
Russia is stifling public backlash with tougher penalties. President Putin signed a bill today that would allow up to 10 years of detention for military personnel who surrender, desert, or refuse to fight. The sentence was doubled compared to the previous (5 years).
In addition, the Ministry of Defense announced on the 24th that it was sacking Army General and Deputy Defense Minister Dmitry Bulgakov and Lieutenant General Mikhail Mijinchev, commander of the Defense Management Center under the General Staff. Foreign media analyzed that he was held responsible for the cause of the defeat, such as handing over the northeastern lands occupied at the beginning of the war to Ukraine again recently.
Russia has again warned of the possibility of using nuclear weapons. In the midst of referendums for Russian territorial incorporation in four Russian-occupied Ukraine (Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporiza and Kherson), Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov at a press conference after addressing the United Nations General Assembly in New York If the region is incorporated into Russia, it will receive full Russian protection, including nuclear weapons.” In the four polling stations, illegal elections are being conducted in effect, with residents putting out their ballots in ‘transparent ballot boxes’ under the surveillance of soldiers with rifles. Meanwhile, the Russian military even launched a missile attack on apartments in Zaporiza.
He also offered a consolation plan for military mobilization. The plan is to give all foreigners who serve in the military for one year the Russian citizenship, which was originally required to reside for five years, and recommend lending institutions to defer the repayment of debts for mobilized reservists.
On the other hand, Charles Michel, the standing chair of the European Union (EU) summit, said in an interview with Politico on the 23rd that Europe should accept Russians fleeing the mobilization order. Previously, the three Baltic countries and Poland refused to grant Russian asylum. Ambassadors of EU member states are discussing how to deal with Russians entering Europe on the 26th.
Reporter Baek Min-kyung