Russia plans to introduce year-round military conscription

Russia’s State Duma, the lower house of parliament, has approved a bill at first reading that would make military conscription take place all year round, from 1 January to 31 December, instead of twice a year as it currently does.

Source: Kremlin-aligned Russian news agencies RIA Novosti and Interfax

Details: The draft law would permit Russian enlistment offices to carry out medical examinations, psychological screenings and conscription board meetings throughout the year. However, draftees would, as before, be sent to military units only twice a year – from 1 April to 15 July and from 1 October to 31 December.

The bill also allows call-up notices to be issued at any time during the year. If a conscript does not receive a summons, they must report to the enlistment office on their own to have their information verified within two weeks of the start of the next dispatch period.

Andrei Kartapolov, chair of the State Duma Defence Committee, who introduced the bill, said the measure should "ease the workload of enlistment offices", which currently "work for three months a year rushing around like a scalded cat".

Background: In 2023, the Russian State Duma raised the upper conscription age for men to 30, barred those who had received draft notices from leaving the country, and increased the fine for failing to appear at enlistment offices tenfold.

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