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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said that, according to a report by Oleh Ivashchenko, head of the Main Intelligence Directorate of Ukraine’s Defence Ministry, Russia is preparing for mobilisation following parliamentary elections scheduled for September. Zelenskyy made the remarks in a video posted on his Telegram channel.
Zelenskyy said Russia’s preparations for mobilisation were confirmed by internal Russian documents.
“They are preparing for this in the autumn, immediately after the formal parliamentary elections. Putin’s plan is not particularly complicated: he wants to show that Russians support the war; all the parties that have been allowed to participate are, in one way or another, opposed to peace,” Zelenskyy said.
He added that Russian President Vladimir Putin plans an additional “rapid mobilisation” of several hundred thousand Russians by the end of the year, and a similar number next year.
“This is in addition to the mobilisation they are trying to carry out through contracts,” Zelenskyy said.
“Monthly losses among Russian forces on Ukrainian territory amount to at least 30,000 personnel, 60% of whom are killed. The overall number of occupation forces on our land has gradually decreased thanks to our proactive actions and, above all, the use of unmanned aerial vehicles,” the Ukrainian president stressed.
According to Zelenskyy, the Kremlin leader believes that additional mobilisation and the deployment of troops from North Korea will allow Russia to prolong the war and intensify offensive operations.
He stressed that Ukraine is preparing for active measures to make it as difficult as possible for Russia to implement such plans.