By decreeing partial mobilization, Russian President Vladimir Putin would violate a simple pact with the people of his country that helped him stay in power for two decades, journalist Nataliya Vasilieva believes.

Vasilieva, the Russian correspondent for Britain’s The Telegraph and a former Associated Press journalist, notes that Putin’s “extraordinary” speech this morning “breaks a two-decade-old pact between the Kremlin and the Russian people: you can see your life, and we can see what we want on the international stage.”

The journalist also mentions the secret clause of the mobilization decree, which Putin has already signed, adding that it is “incredibly vague” and that in theory millions of Russian men and graduates who received military degrees years ago could have been mobilized back then as part of their training in the field technology and other fields of military application.

However, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu gave assurances in his speech immediately following Vladimir Putin’s statement that Russian students would not be mobilized “regardless of the circumstances,” without mentioning those who had already graduated.

Shoigu also said that in the first phase, 300,000 reservists with military service experience will be mobilized, but given that military service is mandatory in Russia, this could mean almost anything.

The first reactions in Russia after the decree on partial mobilization

Immediately after the Kremlin leader’s speech, several Russian activists who were not imprisoned or forced to leave the country called for protests across the country, warning that after partial mobilization in Russia, “war will come to every home.”

“Thousands of Russian men – our fathers, brothers and husbands – will be thrown into the meat grinder of war. What will they die for? What will mothers and children shed tears for?” – said in a statement published by the St. Petersburg youth movement Vesna.

Imprisoned dissident Oleksiy Navalny, for his part, warned that with the decree on mobilization, Putin wants to “contaminate the hands of hundreds of thousands more people with blood.”

“Everything is done so that one person can keep his power and continue it,” he condemned, warning the West not to ignore Putin’s threats with “nuclear weapons.”

Many Russians began to leave the country after Putin’s announcement

After the Kremlin leader’s statement, requests for plane tickets from Russia to countries where they still have access sold out or ended up selling out at astronomical prices.

According to a screenshot from a website selling plane tickets, which was shared today in Russia on Telegram and WhatsApp, the most expensive one would cost one million rubles (€16,600).

Since February 27, the European Union has closed the airspace for Russian planes.

Later that day, retired Colonel-General Andriy Kartapolov, chairman of the Moscow State Duma Defense Committee and former deputy defense minister, “advised” Russian citizens targeted for registration not to travel abroad or even move around the country.

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