If, 10-15 years ago, the employees of the military commissariats were told that the issues of conscription related to staffing would be resolved even before the start of the conscription, then many, I think, would only chuckle bitterly. Serving the Motherland on their own - without pulling out with the help of numerous subpoenas or the involvement of law enforcement officers - not all persons falling under the conscription campaign were summoned. Many had to be dragged, as they say, by the ears, neck and other parts of the body, so that they still realize their honorable duty.
The fact that even before the president signed the decree it was possible to talk about staffing, and also about the fact that it would be necessary to arrange almost a competition for vacancies, previously the military commissariat officers could only dream of. It was generally their sweet dream, which seemed unrealizable. And so, as one well-known advertisement tells us, dreams come true …
Information that everything will be in order and even better with the call for "Spring-2016" appeared on the basis of the training of military commissars of the Russian regions. We are talking about the gatherings of the military commissars of the Western Military District near Moscow, which the Izvestia newspaper reported the other day. The reports indicate that the number of draft-age dodgers has decreased by an order of magnitude. Moreover, if only North Caucasian (Chechen and Dagestan) conscripts were previously noted with letters complaining that they were not being hired, now representatives of government bodies at various levels receive such letters in various regions of the country. Young people complain that the officers of the military commissariats refuse to call them up, since those wishing to serve have certain restrictions identified during the medical commission. This can be, for example, overweight or relatively poor eyesight. The reasons for the refusal to come from the draft commissions are simple: the fact is that the military registration and enlistment offices now have the opportunity to make a real choice. And why risk the health of a young person, if the “quotas” of conscription allow you to “deal” with those who are suitable for health and anthropometric parameters, as they say, here and now.
Those who want to serve in the army today are about 30 thousand more than it is planned to draft. The general "spring" draft plan is 155 thousand people.
What has changed in the Russian army, and why service in it has become much more attractive than it was one and a half to two decades ago? Answering this question, you can philosophize for a long time, but in fact, any philosophy will be superfluous, because everything lies on the surface. The prestige of the Russian army has increased. And here not only word of mouth works - when young people who have served on conscription tell their pre-conscript friends that everything is in order in the army (at least in the overwhelming majority of military units), both with "feeding", and with uniforms, and with a number of real-life practice sessions. Although the role of such word of mouth in this case is very significant. It also works what the modern pre-conscript sees on the TV screen, computer, smartphone.
Someone may be surprised, but many modern young people are very actively following the news regarding conscription service, and indeed the state of affairs in the Russian army. And if you compare the media coverage of this state of affairs yesterday and today, the difference is enormous. On the screens there are no longer the frightened yesterday's teenagers, not driven behind the fence of the military unit, dressed in some kind of rags and hungry from a total lack of funding, but quite worthy soldiers of a decent army. And not an army, as in the 90s, turned by the powers that be, excuse me, into a rabble, and actually thrown at the mercy of perfectly equipped and trained fighters of international terrorist cells in the North Caucasus - without any support from the population. And the victorious armies. Yes, yes … Precisely the winners! The very same army, whose representatives have recently shown themselves to be real professionals and heroes, inflicting crushing defeats on virtually the same terrorist bandit groups, but this time "entrenched" in Syria.
Young people see the rewarding of the heroes who returned from the Khmeimim airbase. Young people observe how Russian weapons are being improved, and how much interest it arouses among representatives of foreign countries. Young people understand that taking a place in the structure of the defense of the Fatherland today is really a serious motivation and a real honor.
The attitude of society towards the modern Russian army has also unambiguously changed. If 10 years ago, public opinion studies demonstrated the disbelief of Russians that the army is capable of protecting the country and its citizens, today the situation has turned into a dramatic turn. The majority of Russian citizens (more than 60%) consider the Russian army to be combat-ready and ready to solve sometimes the most difficult and responsible tasks, regardless of what kind of enemy we are talking about. But it is precisely the attitude of society towards the army that is another important element of the prestige of military service. When a soldier is sure that he has support in the form of a reliable rear, that the social significance of his service is great, then the level of his personal responsibility to the state and society rises.
Yes, of course, one cannot say that all the problems in the modern army have been resolved. In principle, no one talks about this. What is important is that these problems can be solved in principle if the state turns to face its army. An increase in the prestige of the army service does not come simply because the corresponding directives will come from from above. The prestige of the army, which is actively being restored today, is a titanic work that state structures cannot do without public support by definition.
In general, the spring draft campaign in Russia has started on a positive wave. Good luck, recruits!
