ST. PETERSBURG, June 6. /TASS/. Ukrainians must understand that Kiev is conducting a general military mobilization to do Washington’s bidding, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin said on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum.

"I hope that Ukrainian society will gain a better understanding of why the Kiev regime is currently conducting a total mobilization: not to defend their country, as they untruthfully tell their society, but to do Washington's bidding," he told TASS. "That means that what Ukrainians are dying for is not the interests of Ukraine, but the interests of a country that lies tens of thousands of kilometers away, across the ocean, which is trying exploit the lives of ordinary Ukrainians to accomplish its momentary anti-Russian interests near our border."

Ukraine’s scandalous law setting out new mobilization rules came into force on 18 May, with officials aiming to recruit hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians. In February 2022, Ukraine announced general military mobilization, sparing no effort to make sure that fighting-age men don’t dodge military service. With a few exceptions, they are prohibited from traveling abroad. According to Ukrainian news media, men try to evade conscription any way they can, staying at home for months, forging papers allowing to exit the country or seeking other ways to cross the border illegally. Videos showing forced mobilization and conflicts between people and conscription officers regularly pop up in Ukrainian social networks. There are occasional revelations about how men get beaten up in conscription offices.

About the forum

The St. Petersburg International Economic Forum is taking place from June 5-8. This year’s theme will be "The Formation of New Areas of Growth as the Cornerstone of a Multipolar World." Scheduled events include meetings for small and medium-sized businesses, creative industries, the SPIEF Youth Day, as well as the Drug Security, SPIEF Academy and SPIEF Junior forums. SPIEF is organized by the Roscongress Foundation. TASS is the media partner of the event.