Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky believes that Russia plans to mobilize an additional 300,000 soldiers after the mid-September legislative elections and could “recruit hundreds of thousands more in 2027” with the aim of taking control of the entire Donbas region in eastern Ukraine, which is the industrial heartland of the country.
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In statements to the press reproduced by the Reuters agency, the leader said this Sunday that Russia could recruit 500,000 more thanks to what he called “peripheral mobilization,” that is, in the most remote areas of Russia. “We believe it will not take place in the main cities, because I don’t think they can hide it very well,” he said.
In Russia, there is also the idea that the legislative elections to be held from September 18 to 20 will be a turning point and that, after them, Russian President Vladimir Putin will try to unblock the stalled war with Ukraine. Among the expected measures is, indeed, a mobilization of military personnel. Voluntary recruitment figures fell last year and Russian authorities have intensified covert troop recruitment. From street raids to proselytizing in universities.
Zelensky also emphasized that Russia is suffering “heavy” personnel losses in its attempt to advance towards the so-called “fortress belt” in eastern Ukraine, the main defensive line in Donetsk province, which blocks the Russian advance to the west. In addition, the leader praised the recent advances of Kiev’s troops in the southeast of the country and added that in 2026 the area of territory occupied by Russia will be equivalent to that liberated by Ukrainian forces.
Zelensky presided over a ceremony in the capital this Sunday on the occasion of the 35th anniversary of Ukraine’s Independence Day, which is celebrated on Monday. He was accompanied by the leaders of the eight Nordic and Baltic countries of Europe (Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, and Sweden).
Coinciding with the visit of the European leaders, Zelensky again stressed that Ukraine needs more interceptors, especially now that Moscow has intensified attacks with its ballistic missiles. The leader said that the 264 interceptors Ukraine expects to receive this year represent a significant decrease compared to the 364 in 2025 and the 675 received in 2023.
On Saturday, Zelensky spoke by phone with French President Emmanuel Macron, who announced on the social network X that he “will strengthen his support with the sending of interceptors,” a day after a bloody Russian attack on a shopping center in the Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih in which at least 16 people died.
“It is crucial, in this context, to give Ukraine all the necessary means so that it can defend its skies and thwart this aggression,” Macron said. “It is essential that all countries that have the means at their disposal join this effort,” he added.
During the summer, Ukraine has intensified a campaign of “drone attacks” aimed at Russian economic infrastructure, “including oil refineries and warehouses of online retailers” such as the giants Wildberries and Ozon.
On Saturday, Putin said that with these attacks Kiev had “opened Pandora’s box and will receive a response against its most sensitive economic sectors.”
Finally, Zelensky also referred to the statements of the popular former Ukrainian Defense Minister, Mykhailo Fedorov, dismissed in July, who called for elections in the country despite the war. According to the leader, elections now would be a “tsunami” that would sweep away the state and its cohesion efforts. “Right now, we cannot divide the country into factions,” the Ukrainian president added, reiterating that his strategy is twofold: “to end the war and preserve an independent and sovereign state.”
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