Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine is not going well, over seven months since he first drop-shipped troops who weren’t even aware of the mission. Ukraine’s been making significant gains in retaking territory, and the Kremlin has punished lawmakers who threatened to overthrow Putin over this war. Meanwhile, Russian troops never wanted to put boots on Ukrainian ground and have threatened to blow away their general and have even been shooting themselves in an effort escape the hellish conflict.
Putin’s been replacing troops through recruitment at Russian prisons that are also “hell holes,” and the situation has grown so dire that Putin’s not only threatening to use nukes but also announced mass mobilization events in Russia. According to CNBC, he’s increasing weapons production and gearing up to send another 300,000 Russians into battle, although he currently stresses that the mobilization is limited to reservists, at least for now:
A partial mobilization is a hazy concept, but it could mean that Russian businesses and citizens have to contribute more to the war effort. Russia has not yet declared war on Ukraine, despite having invaded in February, and it calls its invasion a “special military operation.”
Putin confirmed that military reservists would be called up into active service, but insisted a wider conscription of Russian men of fighting age was not taking place.
300,000 reservists is a lot of bods, even in comparison to Russia’s 144 million population (as of 2020). According to Fox News, Putin delivered a Wednesday speech to stress that his ability and threat to resort to nuclear weapons is “not a bluff,” and he stressed that if NATO’s “nuclear blackmail” continued, then “we will certainly use all the means at our disposal.” The world must miss the days when Putin’s Botox supply was foremost on his mind, rather than waging a dumb, dismal, and incredibly bloody war for his imperialistic ends.