1/ A recent video of a Russian soldier, likely in his 70s, hobbling to the front line in Ukraine reflects how Russia's army is becoming increasingly elderly. "Now all the personnel are grandfathers ... they are being mowed down," say Russian soldiers. ⬇️
https://x.com/wartranslated/status/1941455975497728085
2/ An investigation by the independent Russian news outlet Verstka highlights the changing age profile of the Russian army. Soldiers on the front line have recorded and spoken about the increasing number of "grandfathers" – soldiers over 50s – their units are receiving.
3/ The recruitment of the elderly is being driven by huge casualties. One soldier serving in the Donetsk region says: "Since the beginning of the summer [of 2024], our regiment has lost about half its men, 200s and 300, [killed and wounded] near Chasiv Yar, roughly 500 people."
4/ "They are still sending us additional personnel. Half of those who come are over 50, maybe even more. And not all of them reach their positions."
5/ A video filmed in the winter of 2024-25 shows a soldier, who the person filming says is 62, hobbling along a snow-covered road in the Luhansk region. "Only old men are going into battle. Where is our command looking?" the filmer asks.
6/ "These are the kind of fighters they are recruiting for us. People are [volunteering] out of stupidity, but [the military commissariats] have to look somewhere."
7/ According to a source in the Moscow city government, the average age of recruits rose from around 40 at the start of 2024 to 50 by the end of the year. Half of those volunteering in Moscow were aged over 45 years old by the end of 2024.
8/ Faced with manpower shortages, the Russian government has increased the maximum age of miitary service across a range of ranks and roles. A contract soldier can now serve until 70 years old.
9/ People even older than that have joined the army. 76-year-old Viktor Vazhenin signed up in front of his new wife in Amazar, Transbaikalia in October 2024.
https://x.com/wartranslated/status/1851599274015957409
10/ A 100-year-old man who had served in World War II also attempted to sign up in 2024, but was given a Hero of Russia medal by Vladimir Putin in a ceremony instead.
Perhaps not surprisingly, elderly soldiers appear to be dying in disproportionate numbers.
Perhaps not surprisingly, elderly soldiers appear to be dying in disproportionate numbers.
11/ An analysis by Mediazona found that more than 4,000 Russian contract soldiers aged over 50 overall have died in the war, compared to fewer than 500 regular or mobilised soldiers in that age group. Only 869 have been taken prisoner.
12/ A chart compiled from Mediazona's database of reported fatalities shows a steady increase in the number of Russian casualties during the course of the war – peaking in mid-2024 – with the age of those killed also increasing over time. 
13/ The oldest Russian soldier known to have died in Ukraine was 72-year-old Mikhail Shuvalov, a resident of Khabarovsk Krai. He was rejected when he tried to join the 'Donetsk People's Republic' army after 2014, but managed to join the Russian army in 2022 and was soon killed.
14/ Younger soldiers say that their elderly comrades "can’t handle it," and can’t cope with carrying heavy backpacks or digging trenches and ditches. "And there are illnesses. They are all sick. Either their legs hurt, or their heads hurt, they are also slow."
15/ A video showing an old man struggling to use his weapon – pointing it at himself during training – illustrates the difficulties that elderly recruits are having, and causing, in fitting into the army.
https://x.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1935422819149693061
16/ There are several reasons why older men are signing up. Russian military recruitment centres are under constant pressure (and quotas) to obtain new recruits, so they are not too concerned with ensuring that men are actually able to fight.
17/ For the same reason, legally mandated fitness examinations are concocted, disregarded or not done at all. A soldier may have lost limbs or eyes, be infected with a deadly disease, or confined to a wheelchair, but can still be rated fit.
https://x.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1939938307485393387
18/ The men themselves likely know that they are going to their deaths, but rationalise it in various ways, some of which clearly reflect the effect of state propaganda.
19/ They explain to recruitment officers that they say they fear "NATO tanks in Russia," "let the young ones sit at home," "everyone in my yard has gone," "my friends won't understand me," "my whole family is there," and so on.
20/ The underlying explanation is often likely to be economic. In the Samara region, for instance, a sign-up bonus of 4 million rubles ($45,500) is offered for new recruits, with potential earnings of more than 7 million rubles ($89,000) for a year's service with the army.
21/ Millions more rubles will be paid to the family in the event of death. By comparison, a one-bedroom apartment in a new build in Samara city costs on average 5.2 million rubles. The average regional salary is about 66,000 rubles ($839), far less than a military salary.
22/ As the sociologist Kirill Rogov says, "A typical ‘volunteer’ today ... is a man who comes to the military office with his whole family, and everyone understands what he is doing."
23/ "This money will now be used to buy an apartment for his son, who just got married . . . and his other son, who is going to go to university. He is making a leap for the family, a social leap." In many cases, it's a leap that will be paid in blood. /end
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