 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| . |  |
. |
Sergeyevsky Testing Ground (Primorye Territory) (RIA Novosti) Jul 12, 2010 The number of professional soldiers in the Russian Army should be increased, the head of the defense committee in the Russian parliament's upper house said recently. "Today, officers account for 15 percent of the Armed Forces [personnel], professional servicemen for 25 percent - the rest are conscripts," Viktor Ozerov told reporters at the Sergeyevsky testing ground in Russia's Far Eastern Primorye Territory. "I believe that this is not quite right," he said. The discussion on whether the country's Army should mostly consist of conscripts or professional servicemen has been held in Russia since the mid-2000s, when large-scale military reforms were launched in the country. All Russian men between the ages of 18 and 27 are obliged by law to perform one year of military service, but reports of military hazing and harsh conditions encourage people to evade conscription by bribing military officials and doctors for medical exemption certificates. Following a series of incidents involving the deaths of military conscripts in the past few years, Russian authorities have moved to boost the safety of servicemen and improve the military's image. However, the number of draft dodgers continues to grow. This trend is aggravated by the poor health of many Russian draftees and the "demographic hole" created in the 1990s. Yuri Dashkin, who heads the main directorate for morale in the Russian Armed Forces, said in May that Russia would continue to rely heavily on conscription to man its Armed Forces in the near future rather than make a transition to fully professional army. The major reason for this, he said, was the current economic situation in the country and limited resources. The Russian military was planning to draft about 270,000 eligible young people during the spring 2010 conscription. In line with the ongoing military reform, the Russian Armed Forces will be downsized to 1 million personnel by 2016, enlisting 150,000 officers and about 745,000 soldiers. The length of military service for draftees will remain unchanged at 1 year.
Source: RIA Novosti
Share This Article With Planet Earth
Related Links Russian Federation Ministry of Defence
Four years on, Israel troops learn from Lebanon warElyakim Training Base, Israel (AFP) July 9, 2010 Four years after its devastating war in south Lebanon, Israel says it hopes peace will hold but keeps its troops at the ready, claiming Hezbollah is stockpiling weapons in villages. At the Elyakim army base in northern Israel, a "village" of concrete structures, done up to look like simple one- and two-storey homes, is riddled with paint ball markings. Burnt out trucks, a wrecked tank an ... read more |
|
|
| The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2010 - SpaceDaily. AFP and UPI Wire Stories are copyright Agence France-Presse and United Press International. ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by SpaceDaily on any Web page published or hosted by SpaceDaily. Privacy Statement |
del.icio.us
Digg
Reddit
YahooMyWeb
Google
Facebook
