Russians With Dual Citizenship Can Now Be Drafted, New Putin Decree Says

On Monday Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree which further seeks to address reported manpower shortages due to the war in Ukraine and after the prior controversial ‘partial mobilization’ order. 

For the first time, Russians who hold dual citizenship are allowed to be drafted, according to the new decree. This changes the longstanding law stating that dual nationals were exempt from conscription. 

“Nationals of any country can continue to serve in the Russian army under a contract in the ranks of soldiers, sailors, sergeants and foremen, so long as the individual isn’t under investigation, convicted or has a conviction that hasn’t been expunged, similar to the rules that apply to Russian citizens, according to the decree,” WSJ writes.

This will mark the first time that dual-national Russians can potentially drafted going back to a 1999 regulation. The wording of the law suggests Americans or Israelis, or dual citizens of any other countries who previously warned of this possibility could face conscription.

While this could possibly target a minority of Russians holding dual citizens from Western countries, the decree appears aimed primarily at tapping citizens hailing from border and regional countries. 

“According to some military observers the easing of the citizenship regulations are primarily aimed at nationals from countries in Russia’s near abroad, such as in Central Asia, whose citizens saturate the migrant-worker labor force in Russia,” the WSJ report continues.

Russia is commonly estimated to have at least half-a-million people claiming dual citizenship. However, many may have fled the country in the weeks after Putin’s September 21st partial mobilization order. 

According to a recent report in The Moscow Times, many of the hundreds of thousands of Russians who initially fled on fears of being drafted and sent to Ukraine have returned home due to work and economic stability factors. 

“Draft-age men who left Russia in fear of being sent to fight in Ukraine are returning home after Russian President Vladimir Putin announced an end to the country’s chaotic mobilization that swept hundreds of thousands into the Armed Forces,” The Moscow Times wrote. “After the initial rush to get out of the country spurred by rumors of border closures, many found themselves facing the tough reality of trying to make ends meet in an unfamiliar city.”

That September order saw some 700,000 Russian young men flee the country within the weeks following, the Kremlin earlier admitted.