Putin Ramps Up Recruitment of Women as Humiliating Losses Mount

Gavriil Grigorov / Sputnik/Gavriil Grigorov/Pool via Reuters Vladimir Putin has stepped up efforts to recruit women into the war against Ukraine, as Kyiv’s summer drone offensive piles unprecedented pressure on the Kremlin.

Women can sign military contracts in any Russian region after a Spring rule change, with recruiters advertising positions on Telegram channels, according to Polish investigative publication Vot Tak .

Requirements are largely the same as those for men: Russian citizenship, ages roughly 18 to 45, at least a secondary education, a passing health category, and no criminal record—though those with expunged records are sometimes accepted.

Most postings exclude pregnant women or those with young children, though some don’t specify family status at all.

Pay, benefits, and contract terms mirror those offered to male recruits, and contracts with the Ministry of Defense are automatically extended until the war ends.

Mediazona , a Russian independent media outlet working with the BBC, has confirmed almost 240,000 Russian deaths since Putin’s “special military operation” started in February 2022.

These are confirmed deaths, but the total is likely much higher.

Regional authorities have layered on additional tactics beyond straightforward advertising.

Since late 2025, female college and university students have been encouraged to enlist in cities including St.

Petersburg, Samara, Krasnoyarsk, Novokuznetsk, Yaroslavl and the Ulyanovsk region, with one closed recruitment meeting held for women only at a technical college in Krasnoyarsk.

Officials in Tomsk advertised for female drone operators for “facility security” in May, while a district in Perm Krai sought “drone operators and drivers for humanitarian aid” the following month.

Russian women have increasingly reported unsolicited outreach.

A resident of Kaliningrad named Nadezhda said she received a call offering a $35,000 contract immediately after enrolling her child in kindergarten; she declined, and recruiters never called again.

Another woman, the mother of a seven-year-old, recalled her reaction to a similar pitch: “As soon as they told me, ‘Would you like to sign a contract to defend the motherland? We’re calling and offering it to girls, too,’ I said, ‘Are you f---ing nuts?’” Mediazona reported that even a pregnant woman received a military summons.