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What did Russia's mobilisation set in motion?
Summary
A retrospective on the reactions inside and beyond Russia to the mobilisation, as they stood on 26 September 2022.
What happened when Russia called up its citizens, and how far did the reaction reach? By 26 September 2022, the answer could be seen in protests, border queues and diplomatic moves across the region.
Protests continue in the North Caucasus
On 26 September 2022, spontaneous protests against the mobilisation continued in Dagestan and Kabardino-Balkaria. The day before, mass protests had taken place in Dagestan, where demonstrators clashed with police. Elsewhere, the number of people detained in anti-war protests across Russia rose to more than 2,000 by 25 September. A day earlier, on 24 September, at least 700 detentions had been reported.
Leaving the country
Protest was one response; departure was another. On 24 September, it was reported that thousands of fighting-age men were continuing to leave Russia because of the mobilisation, with massive lines at the borders with Georgia and Finland.
Pressure from outside
The reaction was not confined to Russia's own territory. On 25 September, Uzbekistan suspended the use of Russia's Mir card payment system. The stated reason was the need to carry out necessary technical procedures, and the move was said to be unrelated to sanctions.
On the Ukrainian side, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed on 25 September that Ukraine had received NASAMS air defence systems from the United States. On 24 September, Ukraine announced a reduction in the staff of Iran's diplomatic mission, in response to Iran's delivery of drones to Russia.
An admission about Wagner
On 26 September 2022, Yevgeny Prigozhin, a Russian oligarch and close ally of Vladimir Putin, publicly admitted for the first time that he had founded the Wagner Group. The private military company is accused of war crimes in places where it has been deployed, and Prigozhin had previously denied any involvement with it.
Reading the day
Taken together, these reports show a war whose effects were spreading beyond the front line. Inside Russia, the mobilisation prompted street protests, large numbers of detentions and an outflow of men of fighting age. Abroad, a neighbouring state paused a Russian payment system, Kyiv received new air defence equipment and cut back Iran's diplomatic presence. The Prigozhin admission added a further development on the same date, concerning a force that had long been tied to him in public accounts but that he had denied owning.
