Of the previous 300,000 mobilized, the names of at least 19,158 killed are known. The number of missing and wounded is much higher.
Russian mobilized soldiers at a railway station in the settlement of Prudboy, Volgograd Oblast, September 29, 2022. Photo: AP Photo / File
Recently, information has been circulating in Russian social networks that the Kremlin may carry out a new mobilization in the autumn. The figure most often cited is 1.2 million people. This number is mentioned, in particular, by Z-blogger Romanov. He draws attention, among other things, to exercises for officials in the regions related to the organization of mass mobilization.
"The war is turning into a drone war. Pulling a million people out of the economy is a very questionable and extremely unpopular idea," condemns one Russian commentator regarding such a prospect.
As the Kyiv Independent reports, analysts believe that Russia may undertake a new open mobilization only in the event of an immediate threat of front collapse or a sharp transition to a war economy. This could also indicate preparations for expanding the war beyond Ukraine.
The first wave of "partial mobilization" in September 2022 caused panic and provoked hundreds of thousands of Russians to flee abroad. Now, with the Russian economy already significantly undermined by the war, and society weary of the immense number of casualties and problems caused by military actions, a second wave could prove much riskier for the authorities.
"If Russia does indeed launch a military mobilization, it will be a sign that the regime is under immense pressure and in a political trap," says Max Bergman, an analyst at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
According to him, mobilization is "a huge gamble for Putin, a bet that could endanger himself and his regime."
The first and so far only mobilization in Russia was announced on September 21, 2022, after the defeat of Russian troops near Izium. It lasted until the end of October. Officially, the authorities then reported the mobilization of 300,000 people. According to independent estimates, there could have been more than 527,000.
According to the latest estimates by BBC and Mediazona analysts, at least 19,158 thousand mobilized soldiers have died — these are those whose names are known. Moreover, one in five of these known casualties did not live even two months after mobilization.
The total number of deceased Russian servicemen from the beginning of the full-scale war until the end of 2025 was estimated by analysts at 352 thousand people. Today, it is already approaching 400 thousand. About 1.5 million Russians have been wounded. No major power has suffered such losses since World War II. Now, as the real figures of losses have gradually become known to society, the number of Russians willing to fight under contract has begun to decline.
You can read the stories of Belarusians who were recruited for the war by following the links below.
Valfovich called the drone explosion near the bus accidental, but it was too late. Propaganda had already found the culprits and covered the whole world in dirt 99
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