Military documentation shows persistent registration of migrants
Omsk: Foreign and Newly Naturalized Citizens Summoned for Military Service
Authorities in Omsk, Russia, have called nearly 70 foreign nationals and newly acquired Russian citizens to the military enlistment office to register for service. This move is part of an ongoing operation to identify violations of immigration laws and ensure compliance with military service obligations among foreign citizens.
Investigators from the local military investigative department have scrutinized over 30 foreign citizens and Russian nationals who have recently obtained their citizenship. As a result of their inquiries, five individuals were ordered to appear at the military enlistment office.
The operation in Omsk, carried out by the Russian Investigative Committee, aims to maintain immigration law regulations and enforce the military service responsibilities of foreign citizens and naturalized citizens residing in Russia.
Out of the 70 new Russian citizens registered for military service in the region last month, 18 face conscription, while three are already serving in the Armed Forces. This move marks the intensification of Russia's recruitment campaigns, targeting individuals primarily from Central Asian countries like Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan.
In a similar action conducted in April, sixteen individuals who had not registered for military duty were sent to the military enlistment offices following a sweep at left-bank markets.
Notably, this operation in Omsk underscores a broader strategy by the Russian government to increase military manpower, particularly through the recruitment of foreign nationals and newly naturalized citizens, often using coercive methods. Russia has leveraged the offer of citizenship as a recruitment tool, threatening to revoke naturalized citizenship for non-compliance and employing a registry to track migrants residing illegally in the country. Additionally, Russia enforces military service obligations on dual nationals, requiring them to serve regardless of their other nationality.
Sources:[1] International Crisis Group, Central Asia: Russia's Pivot in a New Direction. Available at: https://www.crisisgroup.org/europe-central-asia/central-asia/russia-federation/analysis/russias-pivot-new-direction
[5] Human Rights First, By the Numbers: Forced Recruitment of Dual Nationals in Russia. Available at: https://www.humanrightsfirst.org/resources/forced-recruitment-dual-nationals-russia
- The intensified recruitment campaigns in Russia, such as the one in Omsk, are targeting foreign nationals and newly naturalized citizens, primarily from Central Asian countries, as they seek to maintain immigration law regulations and enforce military service responsibilities, often employing coercive methods.
- The ongoing operation in Omsk, led by the Russian Investigative Committee, underscores a broader strategy by the Russian government to increase military manpower, potentially involving war-and-conflicts, politics, and general-news topics, as they leverage the offer of citizenship as a recruitment tool, threaten to revoke naturalized citizenship for non-compliance, and track migrants residing illegally in the country, while also enforcing military service obligations on dual nationals, regardless of their other nationality.
