Deputies are ready to find work in the rear

On September 21, President Vladimir Putin notified parliament of a partial mobilization in the country. Now deputies and employees of the State Duma apparatus who have “military skills” will be able to participate as volunteers in a military special operation (SVO) in Ukraine, its speaker Vyacheslav Volodin said at a plenary session of the lower house.

“There is no armor (that is, the right not to serve in the army. – Vedomosti) – let’s proceed from this,” Volodin said. According to him, deputies Adam Delimkhanov and Akhmed Dagaev are already in the field of hostilities, who participate in them as volunteers, as well as Viktor Vodolatsky and Dmitry Sablin.

“But we must ask ourselves, colleagues, what kind of assistance will be effective. The President spoke about this, the Minister of Defense [Сергей Шойгу] talked about it,” Volodin said. He proposed to decide which of the deputies could be in demand.

“We have assistants, we have a large apparatus. Yes, they are civil servants, but let’s also gather those who have experience, who work with us and would like to take part, can be a volunteer. We will only support it. We must have a position here with you. And you and I must implement it,” Volodin said. According to him, the State Duma will support the decision of deputies who have the “desire” and “necessary military skills and knowledge” to participate in the NVO.

Communist Party leader Gennady Zyuganov said he had been waiting for a long time for the president to request mobilization. Last week he himself insisted on its necessity. Zyuganov said that 33 million people were mobilized during the Great Patriotic War. Now, in his opinion, there will be enough volunteer recruits, if they are provided and given social guarantees. At the same time, he believes that a reservation is needed for those who work in agriculture.

Zyuganov also proposed that the president convene the deputies and the government to determine “what we will do, each in our own line, in order to ensure the success of this operation.” In 2014, Putin addressed the parliament after the request of the Crimean leadership to join the Russian Federation.

LDPR leader Leonid Slutsky called the president’s decision on partial mobilization “a wise position.” “There would be no mobilization if the collective West had changed its mind in time,” he said, adding that Russia was ready for negotiations on the terms of “the demilitarization and denazification of Ukraine,” but Kyiv withdrew from the negotiations. Now, according to the deputy, there can no longer be any negotiations.

Partial mobilization is “the beginning of a serious defense of the national interests of the Russian Federation and the unconditional support of our brothers throughout Novorossia,” said Sergei Mironov, leader of A Just Russia – For Truth.

The leader of the New People, Aleksey Nechaev, mentioned that he discussed a lot with voters when the special operation would end. And he told them that there are two ways to end it: negotiations and victory in hostilities, which will require mobilization decisions. Since Kyiv refused to negotiate, “there is only one way left – a military victory,” he said.

Partial mobilization Nechaev called “sufficient” and “not superfluous.” He recalled that Ukraine did not carry out partial, but complete mobilization. “Most families this measure [частичная мобилизация] will not touch, and this is a very difficult, but very accurate solution. And, of course, our party and the New People faction support this decision of the president,” the deputy said.

The most curious was the speech of the deputy head of the United Russia faction Dmitry Vyatkin. He stated that it was hard for him to decide not to go to the zone of the special operation in Ukraine.

“Sometimes it seems that, probably, to get away from solving problems in some way and write a statement, go to the front – this is probably the easiest solution. But behind us, behind each of us, behind all our parties, there are citizens who seem to live a normal, peaceful life,” Vyatkin sighed into the microphone. Therefore, according to him, work in the rear is “no less important than the feat of arms of our brothers at the front” – including the adoption of unpopular decisions by deputies.

According to Art. 18 of the law on mobilization training and mobilization in Russia, a deferment from conscription for military service for mobilization is granted to members of the Federation Council and deputies of the State Duma. But the chairman of the State Duma Committee on Defense, Andrey Kartapolov (United Russia), followed Volodin, saying that the deputies had no reservations for mobilization: “The deputies will do everything to ensure that the tasks are completed either here or with arms in hand. While the number of deputies [которые захотят участвовать в СВО] unknown. I think almost everyone is ready to volunteer.”

Vedomosti sent inquiries to the press services of all five factions with the question of how many deputies and assistants to deputies are ready to become volunteers. So far there have been no replies.