Kartapolov: Raising the draft age does not mean an increase in the number of conscripts

In Russia, the number of military personnel called up for military service will remain the same after changing the scope of the draft age, said Andrei Kartapolov, head of the State Duma Committee on Defense, on the air of the TV channel RBC.

“Our number of conscripts is decreasing every year, their number will not be increased. How many of them were called up, so many will be called up – about 200,000 people a year … It was only about changing these age limits, ”he said.

Kartapolov also commented on his own words in an interview with Parliamentary Newspaper that the next draft will be of a mixed type, that is, men aged 18 to 30 will be subject to it. As the deputy noted, this is only one of the possible options, but the decision will be made by the Ministry of Defense. He also opposed the idea of ​​involving all youth in military training.

Earlier today, the press secretary of the President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Peskov said that Vladimir Putin conceptually supported the idea of ​​raising the draft age, but the details and design of this initiative are the prerogative of the Ministry of Defense.

Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu proposed a gradual increase in the draft age from 18 to 21 years, and the limit from 27 to 30 years during an expanded meeting of the board of the Russian Defense Ministry on December 21. He also called for an increase in the number of military personnel to 1.5 million. Putin then supported these changes.