MOSCOW, December 25. /TASS/. More than 260,000 conscripts were drafted into Russia’s armed forces during the two military draft campaigns held amid the pandemic, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said during a teleconference on Friday.

"Amid the complex epidemiological situation two draft campaigns were held successfully. In 2020, more than 260,000 conscripts were drafted into the army, as expected," Shoigu said.

The military personnel’s social problems continued to be addressed this year. "Military servicemen’s wives were given jobs as promised and places at kindergartens and schools were reserved for their children. More than 111,000 servicemen were provided with housing," Shoigu said.

He noted the ongoing struggle against the coronavirus pandemic. "Strict quarantine regime was imposed at military academies and a reserve of beds at military hospitals, including some for civilians, was created. PCR laboratories have been deployed. About 6,000 tests are made there a day," Shoigu said.

He stressed that mass vaccination of the military personnel was continuing. "We have managed to bring down the average infection rate in the armed forces to a level below the nation’s average," Shoigu said.