Putin: Russia will abjure conscription service in a short while

Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Russia was moving away from military service by conscription. Although the process is slow due to budget constraints, compulsory military service in Russia will be canceled, Putin said when talking to members of WorldSkills Russia national team, who wondered if it was possible to give the right to alternative military service for a new generation of champions, RIA Novosti reports.

"We must keep in mind the fact that we are gradually moving away from conscription service," Putin said. He promised that the work in this direction would continue. "Some time will pass, and this issue will no longer be relevant," the president said.

He also referred to the creation of scientific companies in the country and said that the Defence Ministry would create a "skill-intensive park for young specialists who graduated from higher education institutions and can pass not alternative, but genuine military conscription service, where they can apply their best knowledge and skills."

Putin noted, however, that there was no ready-made recipe to use such ideas in practice.

For the time being, the Defence Ministry of the Russian Federation has 12 scientific companies, where 648 people serve, and four sports companies with 381 servicemen.

At present, conscription military service in Russia lasts for one year.

Pravda.Ru