Approval of the bill to raise the age of contract soldiers in the Russian army to 70 years is unlikely to increase Russia's combat capability. This is stated in an intelligence report by the British Ministry of Defense, UNN reports .
Details
The draft law envisages raising the age limit for contract servicemen, including those who were recruited before June 2023, to 65 years, and for officers to 70 years.
This would substantially raise the current age limit of 51 for non-officer personnel and likely increase the length of the contract.
Intelligence indicates that, according to open data, the average life expectancy of Russian men in pre-war 2021 was 64.2 years. Thus, the proposed measure gives these servicemen a de facto lifetime contract.
Although this measure is likely to reduce the need for additional mobilization, the increase in the number of servicemen over the age of 51 is unlikely to increase the combat capability of the Russian army, especially in mobile attacks
Recall
The Russian authorities in 2024 increase military spending, while reducing contributions to the National Welfare Fund and increasing domestic taxes and debt to finance the planned expenditures.