In a briefing to reporters, Western officials said it indicated that ordinary Russians were beginning to see the human cost of the invasion and that mass mobilization of civilians in the army was about to happen.
The Kremlin also fears that mobilizing across the country could cause unrest in cities, and is trying to increase the pool of fighters by “making significant recruits” in poor areas and raising the age limit for service, officials said. Video is not available Click to play Click to play The video will play automatically soon8Cancel Play now Moscow is “concerned” about the mobilization as it would be an “admission of failure” in a quick, clean operation in Ukraine and has turned into a slow and fierce conflict, officials said. Officials added that the economic and human cost of the conflict was obvious to ordinary Russians and would increase as winter approached. An official said: “We do not know the full extent of the Russian casualties, the current estimate is about 20,000 dead, but we have seen reports of huge increases in funeral spending in Russia since February.” Western officials say there is “more talk” of Vladimir Putin’s health and “more speculation” about who will replace him in Russia. The 2024 presidential election “certainly looks more interesting than maybe six months ago,” officials said. However, there does not appear to be an “immediate threat” to the Russian president’s position from the elite or the general population, they said, even if an estimated 20,000 Russian soldiers were killed in the Ukraine war. Although there will be political repercussions on how Putin is harming Russia’s position in the world and its economy, they are unlikely to happen this year or “in a way that helps Ukraine,” officials said. To subscribe to the Daily Record Politics newsletter, click here.
