Zelenskyy: Russia preparing new autumn mobilisation wave

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his evening address on 11 August that Ukrainian intelligence has confirmed Russia is preparing a fresh wave of mobilisation this autumn.

According to Zelenskyy, Oleh Ivashchenko, head of Ukraine's Defence Intelligence, briefed him that internal Russian documents confirm the plan, which is timed to follow Russia's so-called parliamentary elections.

Putin's calculation

Zelenskyy explained that the Kremlin's goal is to create an impression that Russians support the war, noting that every party still permitted to run in the elections is, in one way or another, opposed to peace. After the vote, he said, Putin intends to carry out a rapid additional mobilisation of several hundred thousand Russians by the end of the year, with a similarly sized wave planned for next year.

Zelenskyy stressed that this mobilisation would come on top of Russia's ongoing efforts to recruit soldiers through contract enlistment.

Ukraine's response

The Ukrainian president added that his country is already preparing to make it as difficult as possible for Russia to carry out these plans, though he did not specify what measures are being taken.

The statement follows Zelenskyy's remarks on 10 August that Russia had received additional ballistic weapons from North Korea and intends to deploy an extra military contingent on its own territory.