Russia Raises Reserve Forces Mobilization Age Limit by 10 Years... Mobilization Possible up to Age 65

The Russian parliament passed a bill raising the upper age limit for reservist mobilization by more than 10 years, allowing elderly men up to 65 years old to be conscripted into the war. This is interpreted as a response to the severe manpower shortage caused by massive casualties as the main frontlines of the Ukraine war have recently reached a stalemate.

The Russian parliament has decided to amend the law to increase the maximum age limit for reservists who can be mobilized for the Ukraine war by up to 10 years.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

According to the RIA Novosti news agency on the 18th (local time), the Russian State Duma (lower house) passed the "Amendment to the Military Service Act," which includes raising the age limit for reservist mobilization, during its third and final reading (deliberation) that day.

The amendment is expected to be adopted after review by the Federation Council and the signature of President Vladimir Putin. According to this amendment, the upper age limit for reservist men who have completed mandatory service to be mobilized again will be raised by 10 years from the current 45 to 55.

Additionally, the upper age limit for mobilization of senior officers (field-grade officers) and junior officers (company-grade officers) in the reserves will be changed from 60 and 55 to 65 and 60, respectively. However, the mobilization age limit for general officers in the reserves remains unchanged at 70.

The parliament’s adjustment of the upper age limit for mobilization is seen as a preliminary legal measure to secure soldiers for the prolonged Ukraine war, which has lasted 17 months. The Russian government emphasizes that there will be no additional mobilization orders to supplement troops for the Ukraine war.

However, among Russians, concerns are rising that a second mobilization order will be inevitable soon due to increasing manpower losses from the prolonged war. Russian anti-government media recently reported that at least 47,000 Russian soldiers have died since Russia began its invasion of Ukraine in February last year.

This number is more than three times the number of soldiers lost by the former Soviet Union during the nearly 10-year Afghanistan war (1979?1989). Meanwhile, the Russian government officially claims that the number of deaths in the Ukraine war is about 6,000.

Earlier, when President Vladimir Putin unexpectedly issued a reservist mobilization order in September last year, hundreds of thousands of men of conscription age fled Russia.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.