Free Republic

Every six months, approximately 130,000 Russian conscripts are called up for their year of service, where most of them will face sadistic hazing. In Russian, it’s called dedovshchina, a brutal internal army regime that began in Soviet times but is thoroughly embedded in modern military culture. Western militaries have worked hard to reduce bullying and hazing in the ranks with some, but not complete, success. But in Russia’s army, dedovshchina is a unique cultural staple and a formative part of the military identity. Multiple sources, both those who served in Soviet times and those with experience in the modern Russian...

Pekka Kallioniemi, a postdoctoral researcher at Tampere University in Finland, put forward the theory that Moscow could be deliberately pushing Helsinki to shut its borders to prevent Russians from fleeing should Russian President Vladimir Putin introduce a full-scale mobilization to draft more troops to fight in Ukraine.... "There is an interesting and feasible theory, that Russia will start partial or full mobilization after the March 2024 presidential elections, and that they actually WANT Finland to close the border so that young Russian men can't flee through Finland like they did during the first mobilization wave," Kallioniemi wrote on X, formerly...

Russia has reportedly warned that those who protest Vladimir Putin's decision to call up reservists to fight in Ukraine will be drafted into the military. Protests are planned to take place across the country on Wednesday evening, opposing Putin's decree to partially mobilize Russia's armed forces. Russian media outlets have warned that anyone taking part in "illegal rallies" will be subject to military conscription, according to Samuel Ramani, an associate fellow at the Royal United Services Institute for Defence and Security Studies. Top Kremlin propagandist Vladimir Solovyov shared a post on Telegram outlining the measures.