Putin claims 318,000 were drafted in ‘partial mobilization’

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Friday that 318,000 people were drafted as part of Russia’s mobilization campaign — despite the Defense Ministry’s claim back in September that its target number was 300,000.

Out of the 300,000 people mobilized, we now have 318,000. Why 318? Because volunteers are going. The number of volunteers isn’t decreasing.

According to Putin, 49,000 mobilized soldiers are already “carrying out combat missions,” while the rest are in training.

• The Russian Defense Ministry previously reported that 87,000 mobilized soldiers were already in the combat zone.

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