Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered a partial mobilization of reservists in Russia in what appeared to be an admission that Moscow’s war against Ukraine is not going as planned after nearly seven months of fighting and amid recent losses on the battlefield for the Kremlin forces.
In a televised address to the nation aired on Wednesday morning, the Russian leader warned the West that he was not bluffing by using every means at his disposal to protect Russian territory, in what appeared to be a veiled reference to the ability of Russian nuclear. Putin has previously warned the West not to support Russia against the wall and blamed NATO countries for supplying weapons to help Ukraine.
Officials said the total number of reservists to be called up is 300,000.
Only those with relevant combat and service experience will be mobilized, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said. He added that around 25 million people fit this criterion, but only about 1% of them will be mobilized.
Putin’s announcement came against the backdrop of the U.N. General Assembly in New York, where Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine last February has been the target of broad international criticism
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will address the gathering in a prerecorded address on Wednesday. Putin didn’t travel to New York.
British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace described Putin’s mobilization announcement as “an admission that his invasion is failing.”
“He and his defence minister have sent tens of thousands of their citizens to their deaths, ill-equipped and badly led,” Wallace said in a statement. “No threats and propaganda can hide the fact that Ukraine is winning this war, the international community are united and Russia is becoming a global pariah.”
The partial mobilization order came a day after Russian-controlled regions in eastern and southern Ukraine announced plans to hold votes on becoming integral parts of Russia — a move that could set the stage for Moscow to escalate the war following Ukrainian successes.
The referendums, which are expected to occur since the first months of the war, will start Friday in the Luhansk, Kherson and partly Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia and Donetsk regions.
The war, which has killed thousands of people, has increased food prices worldwide and caused energy costs to soar. It has also brought fears of a potential nuclear catastrophe at Europe’s largest nuclear plant in Ukraine’s now Russia-occupied southeast.
In his address, Putin accused the West in engaging in “nuclear blackmail” and noted “statements of some high-ranking representatives of the leading NATO states about the possibility of using nuclear weapons of mass destruction against Russia.”
In the Russian-occupied city of Enerhodar, shelling continued around Europe’s largest nuclear power plant. Ukrainian energy operator Energoatom said Russian shelling again damaged infrastructure at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant and briefly forced workers to start two diesel generators for emergency power to the cooling pumps for one of the reactors.
Such pumps are essential for avoiding a meltdown at a nuclear facility even though all six of the plant’s reactors have been shut down. Energoatom said the generators were later switched off as main power was restored.
The Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant has been a focus for concern for months because of fears that shelling could lead to a radiation leak. Russia and Ukraine blame each other for the shelling.