Thread by @TheStudyofWar

Russian Mobilization & Force Generation Updates:

1/ Russian officials are establishing domestic veteran support programs, which likely aim to advertise the perks of military service in #Russia.

isw.pub/UkrWar053023

https://twitter.com/TheStudyofWar/status/1663716776255934466

2/ The Russian MoD is reportedly continuing to recruit prisoners from regional penitentiaries. An independent RU outlet reported that Russian Penitentiary Service employees opened recruitment points in prisons and are recruiting prisoners who committed less serious crimes.

3/ The #WagnerGroup continues to weaponize social media to facilitate global recruitment campaigns. @POLITICOEurope, citing UK disinformation research group Logically, reported that #Wagner is using Twitter and Facebook to recruit personnel.

4/ The report showed that #Wagner posted sixty recruitment posts in dozens of languages, including French, Vietnamese, and Spanish, advertising combat, medical, and IT jobs in the Wagner private military company (PMC). isw.pub/UkrWar053023

5/ Russian military spending has reportedly (and unsurprisingly) increased since the start of the Russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. isw.pub/UkrWar053023

6/ The UK MoD cited research from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute that found that Russian military spending grew by 9.2 percent in 2022 to $86.4 billion – or an estimated 4.1 percent of Russian Gross Domestic Product (GDP). isw.pub/UkrWar053023