MOSCOW. Feb 20 (Interfax) - Some 540,000 people signed contracts with the Russian Armed Forces last year, which made it possible to create two reserve armies and six divisions, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu told Russian journalists on Tuesday.
"Almost 540,000 people signed contracts last year. This enabled us to create two reserve armies [and] six divisions," Shoigu said.
"This year, as of today, 50,000 [have signed] contracts, and people keep coming," he said.
Responding to a question about the sentiment among the servicemen in the special military operation zone, Shoigu in particular gave the following example, saying that mobilized individuals receive 14-day leave once every six months, not including travel time.
"In total, 270,000 have taken leave, now another 230,000 have taken the second part of their leave, that is, half a million all in all. Sixty-two people did not return from their leave, and it was mainly for good reasons, mainly due to illness. It shows that people understand the entire measure of responsibility, and these are well-coordinated combat teams," Shoigu said.
He also said there are almost 1,800 people who returned to the front after being wounded for a fourth time, and some 5,000 are students who take academic leave and signed contracts with the Armed Forces.
av sy iz