ST. PETERSBURG. April 7 (Interfax) - About 50,000 conscripts will be drafted for military service in Russia's Western Military District this spring, acting head of the mobilization department at the Western Military District Staff Igor Golovach told reporters.
"The Russian General Staff has tasked Russian constituent territories within the Western Military District's zone of responsibility with drafting for military service and assigning to the Armed Forces and other federal executive agencies about 50,000 citizens," Golovach said at a press conference on the spring draft on Friday.
"The number of conscripts is slightly larger this time than it was in the previous drafts, but this is not related to the special military operation and meets the objective of the enlargement of the Armed Forces," he said.
About 45,000 conscripts were drafted in spring 2022
The fresh conscripts will be sent to forces from April 20.
Conscripts will be serving in military units within the Western Military District's territory. A substantial number of conscripts will be assigned to training and military units. Conscripts' assignment to sport, research, and research-and-production companies will continue during this draft.
"None of the conscripts will be sent on combat or special missions in the special military operation zone," Golovach said.
The Western Military District includes the Republic of Karelia, the Belgorod, Bryansk, Vladimir, Vologda, Voronezh, Ivanovo, Kaliningrad, Kaluga, Kostroma, Kursk, Leningrad, Lipetsk, Moscow, Nizhny Novgorod, Novgorod, Oryol, Pskov, Ryazan, Smolensk, Tambov, Tver, Tula and Yaroslavl regions, Moscow and St. Petersburg.
The spring draft began in Russia on April 1.
Back on March 30, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed an order to draft 147,000 Russian citizens aged from 18 through 27 for military service.
According to the Russian Defense Ministry, 134,500 men were drafted for one-year military service in spring 2022, in addition to 120,000 drafted last fall.