Moscow mayor reveals 45,000 Muscovites currently fighting in Ukraine

Approximately 45,000 of Muscovites are fighting in the war against Ukraine, the Russian capital’s mayor Sergei Sobyanin said on Wednesday.

“Forty-five thousand Muscovites are fighting today in the area of the special military operation. This is a significant part of those who are there,” Sobyanin said according to Russian news agency Interfax.

He broke down the numbers of the mobilization: “About 20,000 people left Moscow,” and about 20,000 contract servicemen and volunteers.

“I don't know how many professional soldiers left, but I think at least 5,000,” he added.

Deputy Security Council Chairman Dmitry Medvedev had said earlier this month that Russia has enlisted more than 230,000 additional personnel into the army since the beginning of the year, the Moscow Times reported at the time.

Medvedev said: “According to the Ministry of Defense, from Jan. 1 to Aug. 3… a total of more than 231,000 people have been accepted for contract service.”

Last September, President Vladimir Putin declared a “partial” mobilization of about 300,000 people, according to state news agency TASS. At the time, Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu said: “The country's mobilization resources have reached around 25 million people. A total of 300,000 reservists will be called up… the partial mobilization is necessary to control the 1,000 km line of contact in Ukraine and the liberated territories.”

The mayor’s reveal of the number of troops actively participating in the war is a rare occurrence as both Russia and Ukraine tend to be very tight-lipped about the numbers of their troops or their losses.

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