The Institute for the Study of War said in its latest update that Russian dictator Vladimir Putin's statement to reporters that mobilization will end soon was likely an attempt "to make a virtue of necessity," as Putin "likely needs to pause or end his partial mobilization to free up bureaucratic resources for conscription."
At the end of September, Putin postponed Russia’s usual autumn conscription cycle from Oct. 1 to Nov. 1 and ordered the conscription of 120,000 men for the autumn cycle, 7,000 fewer than in autumn 2021, the ISW said.
While Russian law usually prohibits the deployment of conscripts abroad, Russian law also now considers Russian-annexed territories in Ukraine to be Russian territory, "ostensibly legalizing the use of conscripts on the front lines," according to the ISW.
