Russia will focus on blunting the new offensive by Kyiv's forces, which is expected to begin soon, Bloomberg writes.

Bracing for a protracted fight, the Kremlin aims to bring in up to 400,000 contract soldiers this year to fill its ranks, according to people familiar with the planning, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss non-public matters.

An ambitious recruitment campaign will allow the Kremlin to avoid another forced mobilization of reservists as it ramps up its campaign to re-elect President Vladimir Putin later this year, sources say.

Last fall's draft shook public confidence and caused a million Russians to flee the country.

Despite the battlefield and political challenges, Putin has made it clear that he is confident that Russia can survive Ukraine's supporters in the US and Europe, betting that if his forces can prevent another breakthrough by Ukrainian forces in the coming months, Kiev's support will wane.

While many in the government and the Kremlin elite doubt whether Russia can ever win, hardline security officials are committed to continuing what they see as an existential struggle.

Almost all of the 300,000 troops mobilized in the fall are now on the battlefield, according to Ukrainian and Western officials, but Russia has failed to take any major cities in recent months.

We will remind that, according to military expert Oleg Zhdanov,

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A person comes to the Military Commissariat and explanatory work begins with him.

Let us add that in the fall of 2022, Russian President Putin announced the end of mobilization in the Russian Federation, but he did not sign a separate decree to that effect.

The Russian military commissar said that the mobilization in Russia has not ended, but has allegedly been suspended.

Read also:

• Ukraine news

• War in Ukraine

• News of Ukraine: video

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