What will mean the deployment of russian mobilized soldiers for Ukraine?

As part of the partial mobilization, which began on September 21 and ended on October 29, 300,000 men were drafted. As of November 1, 87,000 of them have been sent to the combat zone. This information was given by Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu during the meeting of his ministry. A week earlier, when Shoigu reported to the president the end of the mobilization, he named a figure of 82,000 soldiers. Of these, 41,000 would be deployed in combat units, Shoigu reported. In a conversation with the President, he stressed:

"We attach particular importance to soldiers being prepared, trained and equipped [into combat]."

No soldiers would be sent to the area of the special operation who are doing their basic military service and have been called up regularly. All those who finish their basic military service will then be sent home, the defense minister explained.

Those drafted as part of the partial mobilization will receive training for about 3,000 instructors with combat experience from the special operation, RIA news agency quoted Novosti Shoigu as saying on November 1. The curricula focus on training in field conditions, the use of means of communication, and navigation and reconnaissance, the minister said. According to Shoigu, training centers prepare crew members for tanks and combat vehicles, artillerymen, snipers, specialists in drones and electronic warfare, among others.

In addition, the Minister of Defense drew the attention of the commanders of the military districts and the Northern Fleet (which has had the status of a military district since 2020) to the need to deploy newly formed units together with those units already participating in the special operation in Ukraine.

Military experts believe that the reinforcement of the troop contingent in the area of the special operation by soldiers drafted and trained as part of the partial mobilization can positively influence the course of the military operation. Military expert and sea captain Vasily Dandykin noted:

"While the strength of our troop contingent was previously about 150,000 to 200,000 along the entire front, this time a reinforcement of the defenses is noticeable, but not only that. It was reported that 41,000 mobilized were sent to combat units. The reinforcements come with technology and weapons - this is very serious."

In Dandykin's opinion, the number of mobilized mobilised sent to the front can be helpful, for example during the active defense of the front sections at Kherson, Nikolayev and Krivoy Rog.

Analyst Mikhail Onufrienko, in a commentary to the newspaper Vzglyad, suggested that 87,000 mobilized people are theoretically enough to fill gaps on the Kharkov front and establish a continuous defense line from the Russian border to the city of Krasny Liman.

According to Onufrienko, mobilizations are unlikely to be deployed on difficult fronts, such as on the defensive line of the Oskol River on the eastern border of the Kharkov region. The currently most important front section of Kherson had also been strengthened without mobilization. Onufrienko stated:

"Kherson is currently being defended by employees of private military contractors and volunteers, in addition to regular troops. This section is covered."

"Apparently, the mobilized are now being grouped into platoon and company groups and integrated into already existing battalion battle groups. I heard that they are subordinate to battalion commanders in one way or another. There they are also instructed in combat coordination. There are no battalion battle groups consisting only of mobilized people. That would be unwise and ineffective," he added.

For his part, Alexander Kazakov, advisor to the first head of the DPR and current advisor to the leader of the Just Russia - For the Truth party, stated:

"If you look at the situation strategically, we don't need the 300,000 mobilized to reinforce the defensive positions or to hold the front. Especially since Russia has built real defense lines on the northern and southern flanks, and not simply bases between which sabotage troops could seep through. All attempts by the Ukrainian armed forces to attack - whether on the front sections of Kherson, Zaporozhye or in the Lugansk People's Republic near Svatovo and Kremennaya - fail. The Ukrainian army suffers losses and withdraws."

Kazakov pointed out that Russian territories - the west of the DPR and the north of the Zaporozhye region - are still occupied by the enemy. In his estimation, mobilized people will be called up for combat missions in the course of the liberation of these territories.

It should be noted that Russia's Ministry of Defense originally planned to draft fewer than the 300,000 men mentioned in the presidential decree on partial mobilization. Vladimir Putin himself referred to this in mid-October.

Kazakov surmised:

"Our offensive is starting quietly, although it will probably not fully unfold until the end of November."

In fact, at the beginning of the week, there was an activation of advances in the Donetsk People's Republic - near Ugledar southwest of Donetsk and around Avdeyevka, the northern satellite city of Donetsk. The troop movements may testify to plans to encircle the city of Ugledar, which was transformed into a fortified area by Ukrainian troops, from three sides.

At the same time, advances began near Artyomovsk (Bakhmut) in the northeast of the DPR and Maryinka west of Donetsk. AsVzglyadreported, the deployment of Ukrainian troops and equipment (including HIMARS facilities) to the Kherson front left the Ukrainian army on the Donetsk section without operational reserves. On the other hand, since the beginning of the partial mobilization, Russia's armed forces have completely closed the gaps on all fronts, while the ability of the enemy to further exhaust its own mobilization reserves remains questionable. Kazakov stated:

"Apparently, the 87,000 Russian mobilizations are those who have recently taken off their uniforms and have not forgotten how to operate weapons. They do not need to be trained in tactics again. I spoke to a battalion commander at the Kherson front. Two weeks ago, his unit was reinforced by a hundred mobilized, they fought together with the regular soldiers and were just as good."

According to the expert, mobilized people are sent to replenish regular bandages. This is the ideal approach, because the newcomers would be integrated into existing associations. The latter also have their own military training areas for further training.

From other mobilized, separate tank, artillery and telecommunications units would be formed, which have their own tasks, Kazakov said. In his opinion, it would make sense to use the 213,000 reservists currently trained outside the Special Operations area to replace professional soldiers. The latter were then to be used at the front. He stated:

"Professional soldiers could be used to set up storm brigades. In addition, the mobilized could replace the regular units on those front sections that are thoroughly fortified."

At the same time, Russian forces will not attack the Ukrainian fortifications in the DPR - Avdeyevka, Slavyansk, Kramatorsk and Konstantinovka - head-on. He said: "Probably we will bypass them from behind, and there is the Dnepropetrovsk region. Logically, we should go on the offensive in this direction, but whether this will be the most important section of the front is unknown. Therefore, the Allied forces will most likely carry out a second aid offensive. Also, I think Moscow plans to leave Ukraine without access to the Black Sea over the winter and build a land bridge to Transnistria. But only Russia's General Staff knows which direction has priority."