Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a partial mobilization in Russia on Wednesday as the war in Ukraine enters nearly seven months and Moscow loses ground on the battlefield. Putin also warned the West that it is “not a bluff” for Russia to use all means at its disposal to protect its territory.
The total number of reservists called up for partial mobilization is 300,000, officials said.
The Russian leader’s televised address to the nation comes a day after Russian-controlled regions in eastern and southern Ukraine announced plans to hold votes to become part of Russia. Kremlin-backed efforts to swallow four regions could set the stage for Moscow to escalate the war after successes in Ukraine.
The referendums, expected to take place since the first months of the war that began on February 24, will begin on Friday in the regions of Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia and Donetsk, which are partly controlled by Russia.
Putin accused the West of engaging in “nuclear blackmail” and pointed to “statements by some senior representatives of major NATO states about the possibility of using nuclear weapons of mass destruction against Russia.”
A man rides a motorbike past damaged houses in Siversk, Ukraine’s Donetsk region. On Tuesday, Donetsk and three other Russian-controlled regions in eastern and southern Ukraine announced plans to hold referendums on joining Russia in the coming days. (Juan Barreto/AFP/Getty Images)
“To those who allow such statements about Russia, I want to remind them that our country also has various means of destruction, and for separate and more modern components than those of NATO countries and when the territorial integrity of our country is threatened, to protect Russia and our people, we will certainly use all means at our disposal,” Putin said.
He added: “It’s not a bluff.”
Putin said he has signed a decree on partial mobilization, which will begin on Wednesday.
“We are talking about partial mobilization, that is, only citizens who are currently in the reserve will be subject to conscription and, above all, those who served in the armed forces have a certain military specialty and relevant experience,” Putin said.
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said in a televised interview on Wednesday that conscripts and students will not be mobilized, only those with relevant combat and service experience.
LOOK | Referendums in 4 regions of occupied Ukraine:
Russia moves to annex occupied parts of Ukraine
Russian officials announce that they are holding referendums in four regions of occupied Ukraine to annex the territories and bring them fully under Russian control, a move that would further escalate the war.
He said 5,937 Russian soldiers have died in Ukraine so far. Western estimates of Russian military losses are in the tens of thousands.
Shoigu’s update on Russian losses is the third time the Russian military has released its death toll to the public. The latest update came at the end of March, when the Ministry of Defense claimed that 1,351 Russian soldiers were killed in Ukraine.
Putin said the decision to partially mobilize was “fully appropriate to the threats we face, namely to protect our homeland, its sovereignty and territorial integrity, to ensure the safety of our people and people in the liberated territories “.
Earlier on Wednesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy dismissed Russian plans to hold referendums in the occupied regions of eastern and southern Ukraine as “noise” and thanked Ukraine’s allies for condemning of the votes scheduled for Friday.
Ukrainian servicemen drive on a self-propelled artillery vehicle in the newly recaptured Dolyna area in Ukraine’s Donetsk region on September 14. (Evgeniy Maloletka/The Associated Press)
Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, the deputy head of Russia’s Security Council chaired by Putin, said referendums incorporating regions into Russia itself would make the redrawn borders “irreversible” and allow Moscow to use “any means” to defend them.
In his late-night speech, Zelenskyy said there were many questions surrounding the announcements, but stressed they would not change Ukraine’s commitment to retake areas occupied by Russian forces.
“The situation on the front line clearly indicates that the initiative belongs to Ukraine,” he said. “Our positions do not change because of noise or any announcement somewhere. And we enjoy the full support of our partners in this.”
Zelenskyy calls the referendums a “sham”
The upcoming votes, in the regions of Luhansk, Kherson, Zaporizhzhia and Donetsk, will surely go Moscow’s way. But they were quickly dismissed as illegitimate by Western leaders who back Kyiv with military and other support that has helped its forces gain momentum on battlefields in the east and south.
“I thank all friends and partners of Ukraine for today’s firm and massive condemnation of Russia’s attempts to organize new fake referendums,” Zelenskyy said.
In another sign that Russia is looking for a protracted and possibly escalated conflict, the Kremlin-controlled lower house of parliament voted on Tuesday to toughen laws against desertion, surrender and looting by Russian troops. Lawmakers also voted to introduce possible 10-year prison terms for soldiers who refuse to fight.
If passed, as expected, by the upper house and then signed by Putin, the legislation would strengthen the hands of commanders against the failing morale reported among soldiers.
LOOK | Could Ukraine’s Gains Push Putin to Escalate War?
Battlefield losses in Ukraine put pressure on Putin’s war
As Ukraine’s counteroffensive moves forward, there are concerns that the war may be entering a more dangerous phase as Vladimir Putin becomes more desperate to win.
In the Russian-occupied town of Enerhodar, shelling continued around Europe’s largest nuclear power plant. Ukrainian energy operator Energoatom said Russian shelling again damaged infrastructure at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant and briefly forced workers to start two diesel generators to provide emergency power to the plant’s cooling pumps one of the reactors.
These bombs are essential to prevent a meltdown at a nuclear facility even though the plant’s six reactors have been shut down. Energoatom said the generators were later shut down as main power was restored.
The Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant has been a focus of concern for months over fears that the bombings could lead to a radiation leak. Russia and Ukraine blame each other for the bombing