Russia is recruiting thousands of volunteers to replenish its ranks in Ukraine. Prior experience isn’t always required

From Murmansk in the Arctic Circle to Perm in the Urals and Primorsky Krai in the Russian Far East, the call has gone out, appealing to both the patriotism and the wallets of Russians.Relevant military experience is not always required. In all, analysts assess that more than 30,000 volunteers might be mobilized to supplement Russian ranks depleted by five months of combat — between one-quarter and one-third of the force deployed to win the eastern Donbas region, where the majority of volunteers would likely be sent. Last week, Putin has long resisted the idea of a general mobilization in Russia, and this spring’s call-up was similar to that in 2021. These battalions are one way to augment Russia’s military manpower without such a drastic step. They also appear to be focused on poorer and more isolated regions, using the lure of quick cash.What impact these battalions may have is an open question. Chechen volunteer units have played an outsized role in the More recently, other Russian regions have stepped up. One prominent case is the republic of Bashkortostan.A retired navy officer, Alik Kamaletdinov, announced on social media he was recruiting for a volunteer battalion because “Bashkiria has always been a pillar of our state in difficult times. … Let’s support our country and our President Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin not by words but by deeds!”The governor of Bashkortostan, Radiy Habirov, posted on Telegram last week: “Today we are seeing off the second Bashkir battalion to the Donbas.” “Thus, more than 800 volunteers, all sons of Bashkortostan, will go to defend our country and brotherly Donbas.” Other regions that have begun raising volunteer battalions include Chelyabinsk in the Urals and Primorsky in the Russian Far East. Photos of nearly 300 Chelyabinsk volunteers were posted last week. The head of the recruitment office in Tatarstan, Evgeniy Tokmakov, said at a news conference that “battalions should be formed only from natives of Tatarstan, so that they can join the ranks, stand shoulder to shoulder, know each other.”Several units of Cossack fighters are also being formed — not a surprise given that they were prominently involved in eastern Ukraine in 2014. The Orenburg region has already sent three Cossack battalions to the war. The pace of recruitment is picking up — within the past few days the regions of Murmansk in the Arctic Circle and Tyumen in Western Siberia announced the formation of volunteer units.’A crowd with rifles’ Just how these battalions — most are smaller than a regular battalion — will be integrated into the Russian operation isn’t clear yet. The Tatar and Bashkir units will be made into motorized rifle battalions. The volunteer battalion raised in Primorsky Krai will consist only of local residents and will go in support of the 155th Guards Marine Brigade, according to regional authorities. There are signs that Russian manpower shortages in Ukraine are beginning to bite. Ukraine’s Center for Countering Disinformation says it found job vacancies for more than 20,000 Russian contract servicemen at regional employment centers. There have been persistent reports that some battalion tactical groups have had to be reconstituted. But as one analyst puts it, a battalion is more than “a crowd with rifles.” Stepanenko of the Institute for the Study of War said, “these poorly-trained recruits will likely be used as cannon fodder given previous Russian treatment of conscripts and proxy units.” It’s hard to imagine how these disparate groups with no knowledge of the battlespace and rusty or non-existent military skills will influence the conflict. The task of infantry among Russian forces has been largely to take over places already obliterated by indirect fire. Even so, Stepanenko said, the Russians are “continuing to take heavy losses without gaining much ground. They therefore require a constant inflow of Russian manpower to make good their losses.” The Ukrainian military is tracking the units’ formation. Vadym Skibitskyi, a spokesman for the Main Intelligence Directorate, said Russia is planning to form 16 new battalions by the end of July. He told the online portal Krym.Reali that “according to our estimates, there will be about 4,000 people in each region, including Crimea.” Skibitskyi confirmed to CNN that his remarks had been accurately reported but declined to provide further details.Stepanenko believes the ultimate aim is a form of mobilization by stealth. “Putin seems to lack confidence that polls and protestations of support for the war will survive a general conscription effort. Recruitment for volunteer battalions or covert mobilization only affects a small percentage of servicemen and their families,” Stepanenko said.”Such separation allows Putin to control the appearance of the invasion without upsetting most of the Russian male population and their families.”