Russians fear Putin will send them to war once election is over

Russian President Vladimir Putin gives a speech during a ceremony to present state awards in the defense industry sector at the Kremlin in Moscow on Friday. | Sputnik / POOL / VIA AFP-JIJI

Bloomberg

Sep 19, 2026

Russians are growing fearful that President Vladimir Putin may soon order a massive new mobilization for the war in Ukraine after this weekend’s parliamentary elections.

That fear stretches to officials in the Kremlin and army recruitment centers, who’ve been looking to open foreign bank accounts and move assets abroad while encouraging friends and relatives to leave Russia in recent months, documents show. 

While Putin denies he has any such plans, a European security official says Russia’s preparing to draft an additional 300,000 men into the army by the end of the year.

In a time of both misinformation and too much information,
quality journalism is more crucial than ever.
By subscribing, you can help us get the story right.