The State Duma immediately adopted in three readings a law on the abolition of the age limit for viewing the first contract for military service. Immediately after this month, the Federation Council. The document was put into emergency mode in connection with mass reports of military operations in conditions of increased danger and covert mobilization of people ready to be sent to fight.

Russian news agencies do not provide any details about how the State Duma deputies voted and how many votes the documents received in three readings. In the upper house, 159 senators supported the law, one person abstained, TASS reports.

Until now, citizens of Russia could conclude the first contract from 18 to 40 years old, foreign citizens – up to 30 years old. Now there will be no restrictions for citizens of working age.

This initiative became known only five days ago.

The explanatory note to the audit, submitted last Friday, said that “high-precision weapons, operation and industrial equipment require highly professional specialists,” and as such they, as a rule, are trained by the age of 40-45.

Raising the age limit will help attract to the military service “specialists in demand,” primarily related to civilians (medical support, engineering, technical services, operation, communications), the authors of the audit said.

It was introduced by United Russia deputies Andrey Kartapolov and Andrey Krasov. Kartapolov, before being elected to the State Duma, was the Deputy Minister of Defense of Russia, fought in the field of medicine. Krasov served in the 76th Pskov Airborne Division and fought in Georgia in 2008.

The bill, created amid reports about the country that could start a shadowy mobilization of people, is ready to complete the contract and go to Ukraine, on which Russia languished on February 24.

Mobile devices were purchased in many places – for example, in Novosibirsk, during the all-Russian half marathon “Zabeg.RF”, mobile military registration and enlistment offices worked, the Taigo.info publication reports. The BBC has written at length about other recruitment attempts during the war in Ukraine.

On the eve of two people at once, in particular, those associated with the beginning of the invasion, statements were made, according to the content, Moscow is ready for a protracted war.

“We are not chasing deadlines,” Secretary of the Russian Security Council Nikolai Patrushev said in an interview with Arguments and Facts. Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, certifying that a Russian citizen is not being hit on Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure, said: “It certainly slows down the pace of the offensive, but it does this by avoiding casualties among the global population.”

The State Duma stated that the collection for the removal of the age limit for contract servicemen takes place in an accelerated mode, not for covert mobilization of the population.

“How can one talk about creeping mobilization, or that it is a virtual mobilization, or some other kind, – said Interfax member of the Duma Defense Committee Andrey Gurulev. “Mobilization either exists or it doesn’t.”

At the same time, the deputy admitted that the law should send more people to fight in Ukraine. “There are older volunteers who want to work [в Украину]but now we cannot officially call them up, because the law does not allow it,” – Gurulev.

In the skies over Ukraine, 63-year-old retired Major General Kanamat Botashev, who flew the Su-25 attack aircraft, was shot down and killed. Information about the meeting of the pilot was confirmed by the BBC three former subordinates of Botashev. Earlier, the general retired from the armed forces and worked as deputy chairman of the DOSAAF of Russia in St. Petersburg and the Leningrad Region.

Western media expected that Russian President Vladimir Putin might announce a general mobilization at the May 9 Victory Day parade on Red Square, but he did not say anything about it, most of his speech was dedicated to justifying the invasion of Ukraine.

Against the background of expectations of a possible general mobilization from the regions of Russia, there are reports of fires in the military registration and enlistment offices. So far, at least 13 cases are known. The military registration and enlistment offices adopted documents containing conscription into the army.

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