Russia has called in 134,000 new conscripts to begin 12 months of military training in the fourth quarter of 2017.
The schedule is such that new recruits begin in the second and fourth quarters, and together with the spring draft the total number for 2017 is up to 276,000 conscripts. Although that is a very large number, it is actually a reduction of about 10% compared to 2016.
Russia is in the process of moving to a more professional military. Between 2015 and 2020 the number of soldiers with a contract is expected to grow from 300,000 to 500,000, and the number of conscripts will be reduced during the same period.
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