Russia Scraping Bottom of Manpower Barrel, Deploying ‘Dad’s Army’ of Pensioners, Plus Teenage Draftees, To Counter Ukraine’s Invasion

Early sources of cannon fodder are running dry as prison colonies in southern Russia close their doors — too many inmates signed up for what turned out to be one-way tickets to the front.

AP/Dmitri Lovetsky
Newly drafted Russian Marines at St. Petersburg, June 4, 2024. AP/Dmitri Lovetsky

As the one-month anniversary of Ukraine’s incursion into Russia approaches Friday, Ukraine’s continued control of 500 square miles of Russian land is exposing Russia’s critical shortage of military manpower. After 2.5 years of war, the Kremlin is sending teenage draftees to the front, recruiting men up to age 65 for new territorial defense units, paying sky high signing bonuses for professional soldiers, and calling home units of Russia’s Africa Corps.

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