It seems that the “bare-chested riding a white horse” style aesthetic of Vladimir Putin is back, like the image of the Russian president that was supposed to extol his manly qualities, but which went meme and viral on social media. Whether walking down the street or accessing social media, Russians who have been of military age for several days cannot avoid the advertisements of the recruitment campaign to join the country’s army in the offensive against Ukraine.
(RFI) “You are a man. Behave like one!” reads one of the Russian army’s actions, which are intended to give a new boost to military enlistment – dwindling – without resorting to a new forced mobilization, an unpopular move that the Kremlin adopted in September after several military setbacks.
Since then, as a way of appeasing public opinion, the government has launched the largest publicity campaign for voluntary military recruitment since the beginning of Russia’s offensive in February 2022.
In Moscow, advertisements are spread across billboards on highways, shop windows, and bus stops, all promoting “honorable work and decent wages.”
Although the authorities have not announced numerical targets, the Russian press reports that the army hopes to recruit hundreds of thousands of men.
On the Moscow municipality’s website, the promised salary for a soldier sent to Ukraine is 204,000 rubles, more than 10 times the local minimum wage.
Those who participate in the offensive action are also promised a daily bonus of 8,000 rubles ($496) and another 50,000 rubles ($3,099) for each kilometer conquered in an assault brigade, the formation most exposed to enemy fire.
“In Russia, it is a good amount to support a family, including parents. It’s logical: if a person defends his homeland, why don’t they pay it?” said Piotr Lipka, a 21-year-old.
“Enlisting on contract is better” than being mobilized, the Volgograd student added.
“Defend the motherland”
On the posters there are no images of combat, the conflict in Ukraine seems distant. “Our job: to defend the motherland,” ponders a banner with three soldiers under a blue sky.
A video that went viral on social networks shows a taxi driver, an insurance broker, and a physical education teacher followed by the phrase “is this really the path you wanted to choose?”, questioning traditional professions over military activity.
At the end of the advertisement, the three men are satisfied to opt for the army uniform and the assault rifle, under the slogan “You are a man. Behave like one.”
Evgeny Krapivine served in Chechnya in his youth. The 41-year-old man told how he would like to enlist again, but fears that his age would be a problem.
“When I asked, they replied, ‘you are 41, we are not taking you,'” he said. The army later reconsidered his joining and informed him that they can contact the veteran “at any time.”
Launching the campaign, Russian President Vladimir Putin had a law passed in just two days to facilitate a new mobilization, raising fears as the first “partial” military call-up in September caused tens of thousands of men to flee abroad.
With the voluntary recruitment drives, the government wants to “avoid a new scare,” said Denis Volkov, director of the independent Levada study center, adding that the propaganda should have more force in the interior than in the country’s main cities.
In Moscow, the elderly parents of conscripted soldiers receive home care and their children have free places in day care centers.
In case of death, these conscripts are promised shelter for their families and compensation of several million rubles.
(With AFP)