Forced to Fight: Kremlin Turns Occupied Territories into a War Machine

The Russian authorities are intensifying mobilization in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine and expanding the recruitment of foreign mercenaries and prisoners to compensate for the catastrophic losses suffered by the Russian army on the front lines.

First of all, total mobilization affected the occupied areas of the Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson regions. The Russians are trying to replenish their personnel precisely thanks to Ukrainian citizens living in these territories. In addition, mobilization measures are being carried out even at enterprises with critical infrastructure, such as coal mining enterprises, as well as those that ensure the vital activity of regional centers, in particular Luhansk and Donetsk. The shortage of qualified labor is already acute.

Let me remind you that, according to the new law, from January 1, 2026, the conscription of citizens of the occupying country for military service will be carried out without dividing it into the traditional spring and autumn campaigns.

The mobilization is as broad as possible, but it restricts movement.

The mobilization age is set from 18 to 65 years. At the same time, the borders with the Russian Federation from the territory of the temporarily occupied Luhansk and Donetsk regions have been effectively closed to prevent local residents from leaving for Russia and then for European countries. That is, the replenishment of personnel is taking place almost exclusively thanks to the population of the occupied territories.

It is impossible to name the exact number of Ukrainians forcibly mobilized into the Russian army since the beginning of the full-scale invasion. According to the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, the number is 46,327 people. The Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine reported 60 thousand. Most of them are from Crimea, well over 35 thousand people. Sevastopol and the occupied Donetsk region each have over 5,000.

In this way, the Kremlin not only replaces the catastrophic losses of the Russian army but also solves the demographic issue in the captured lands, getting rid of a potentially disloyal population.

Forced mobilization is another manifestation of Russia’s genocidal policy against Ukraine. In addition, the Russians are sending mobilized men to war against Ukraine without any special military training. “The first task that Russia sets itself is to ‘cleanse’ the temporarily occupied territories of the Ukrainian population,” said GUR representative Andriy Chernyak.

Russia has also significantly increased its use of foreign mercenaries.

If earlier the figure was up to 15 thousand citizens of near and far abroad, now, according to the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, the total number of foreign mercenaries reaches about 30 thousand. At the same time, their material and technical support is much worse than that of Russian contract workers.

Prisoners remain another source of troop reinforcements.

Mobilization measures in places of deprivation of liberty have been expanded. Russian law enforcement and special agencies are actually conducting forced mobilization among the so-called special contingent. This group is another category that is considered a resource to compensate for the army’s losses.

It is noteworthy that in 2025, the army of the occupying country, according to Western analysts, attracted at least 126 thousand to replenish the losses of personnel from the so-called “special contingent”—prisoners, loan debtors, and people with problems with the law. These are Russians who are serving sentences in prisons, are under investigation, have loan arrears, and have other problems.

According to Ukrainian intelligence, to cover the human losses at the front, Moscow plans to mobilize at least 10,000 soldiers from the “special contingent” each month in 2026.

Back during the Prigozhin coup, Russian dictator Putin signed a decree granting prisoners the right to sign contracts directly with the Russian Ministry of Defense. Putin’s latest decree continued this practice, in particular, allowing prisoners to sign contracts with the Russian Ministry of Defense directly in the courtroom. In other words, the Russians have expanded the possibilities of covert mobilization.

The Federal Service for the Elimination of Intoxication reports that Russian prisons hold over 500,000 individuals. Therefore, the terrorist country will utilize this group as a significant mobilization reserve. In addition, the Russian special services will solve several issues for themselves at once. First, reducing the financial burden on the Federal Service for the Elimination of Intoxication. Second, this will relieve Russian colonies and reduce the crime situation, both on Russian streets and in places of deprivation of liberty. Third, the Ukrainian Defense Forces usually dispose of criminals. This approach is a tactic of Stalin’s special services, and it is being actively implemented under Putin.

The Russian authorities are also increasing pressure on conscripts.

Mobilization measures are underway among conscripts, who are being forced to sign contracts with the Russian Ministry of Defense, supposedly on a voluntary basis.

At the same time, the Kremlin is avoiding announcing a large-scale mobilization due to fears of internal instability.

Before the elections in the Russian Federation, the Russian dictator Putin will not go for either full or even partial mobilization, fearing social upheaval. The latest ill-considered actions by the authorities, in particular the disruptions to Telegram, which even affected the banking sector, have already sparked a wave of discontent. This episode shows that the Russian authorities are panicking about rising societal tensions.

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