Mass brawl between Russian soldiers at base near Moscow

A mass brawl has broken out between new recruits and established soldiers at a Russian army base near Moscow, media reports said on Monday.

The Kremlin's call for more troops for the war on Ukraine has led many potential conscripts to try to flee Russia, while now tensions appear to have boiled over inside the armed forces themselves.

"The newcomers were not welcomed there with bread and salt. On the contrary, the soldiers serving there demanded the newcomers' clothes and cell phones," the Internet portal Baza reported.

The new recruits had the better of the ensuing brawl though and allegedly beat up the existing soldiers, so much so that around 20 of them locked themselves in a building and called police for help.

The fight went on until the police arrived. Both sides decided not to press charges.