Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu announced that 335,000 people entered military service by contract with the Russian armed forces or volunteer groups since the beginning of this year. The state-backed Russian news agency, RIA, also quoted Shoigu as saying that 50,000 people signed up in September alone. Shoigu also said that conscripts who joined the military during the autumn 2023 draft will not be deployed to fight in the conflict zone in Ukraine.
