Putin announces partial mobilization in Russia

Russian President Vladimir Putin has announced plans for partial military mobilization during his televised address.

According to Putin, the government is going to recruit only those who had served in the army and are considered reservists.

«Authorized agencies will officially inform all those people. We are going to deploy any option we have to protect our country and its people,» he said.

Putin also mentioned that he has ordered the Russian government and defense ministry to provide military personnel of the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk republics with an official status equal to the Russian military. Kazakhstan and the vast majority of other countries do not recognize these entities.

Both so-called republics officially announced referendums on joining the Russian Federation to be held on September 23-27. The same referendums are expected in the Kherson and Zaporizhzhya regions of Ukraine, which have been occupied by Russian forces for several months.