Published October 12,2022
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A Russian army recruit holds his weapon during a military training at a firing range in Donetsk People's Republic, controlled by Russia-backed separatists, eastern Ukraine, Wednesday, Oct. 5, 2022. (AP File Photo)
After recruiting prisoners for Russian mercenary forces, the regular Russian army is now also turning to convicts to recruit soldiers for the Ukraine war, according to civil rights activists and media reports.
"Since the end of September, the Ministry of Defence has started recruiting convicts," the independent investigative news portal Vazhnye Istorii (Important Stories) reported.
The Russian site, which is critical of the Kremlin, reported on visits by the military to penal colonies in the Ryazan region near Moscow and in Stavropol in the North Caucasus.
Civil rights activists from the organization Gulagu.net had previously reported on recruiting attempts in the Nizhny Novgorod region.
The Wagner mercenary group, financed by President Vladimir Putin's confidant Yevgeny Prigozhin, has been recruiting prisoners for use in Ukraine since the summer.
A video shared on social networks purportedly shows Prigozhin himself appearing in front of prisoners and promising that they will be released from prison if they commit to serving as mercenaries in Ukraine for six months.
According to Vazhnye Istorii, the generals of the regular army are also promising prisoners that they will be released after the operation.
The ex-prisoners are reportedly going to be used in a special unit called "Storm." The Defence Ministry is said to be recruiting specifically from among prisoners who have previously served in the security services and who may have combat experience.
