Russian recruits drill in Crimea and near Ukraine’s border: Moscow said on Wednesday that training for recently mobilized reservists has begun throughout Russia, including in the Crimean peninsula that Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014 and the Rostov area near the Ukrainian border.
Training has also started in the Kaliningrad exclave, which borders NATO members Poland and Lithuania, the defense ministry said on its Telegram channel.
The ministry said that all servicemen had already “supplied with the proper attire, acquired weapons, and begun fire training” near Rostov, where Russian forces gathered before invading Ukraine on February 24.
Last week, President Vladimir Putin issued the country’s first military call to arms since World War Two, which might result in the deployment of tens of thousands more soldiers to Ukraine.
Training has started at the base of the Baltic Fleet in Kaliningrad, where Russia has a sizable military presence that includes nuclear-capable missiles.
The ministry said in a statement that “citizens called up from the reserve are recovering their abilities in the operation and maintenance of weapons, and military and special equipment.”
Additionally, training sessions organized to hone shooting techniques and prepare military members for “confident acts on the battlefield.”
In Crimea, the Ukrainian peninsula that Moscow invaded in 2014 and now views as a part of Russia, the ministry said that roughly 2,000 reservists had already received firearms.
Thousands of men of fighting age have attempted to flee Russia in response to the mobilization announcement to escape called up to fight in Ukraine.