Trehubov on Russian infantry: Not professional soldiers, but with combat experience
A modern Russian infantryman has a certain level of training and combat experience, but is not a professional soldier. For the most part, he is a mobilized soldier with a civilian background who received one or several months of training before being sent to the front.
According to Censor.NET, citing LIGA.net, Viktor Trehubov, a spokesperson for the Joint Forces Operation, spoke about this during a telethon.
According to him, the profile of Russian soldiers has changed significantly since the start of the full-scale invasion. At that time, there were many inadequately trained fighters among the occupiers.
"Right now, the typical profile of a Russian soldier is someone who was mobilized either half-consciously or fully consciously. In other words, they went [to fight] to earn money for a mortgage. This is someone who, in principle, had an idea of what awaited them. A person who underwent training for at least one or several months. This is a person with some level of experience," Tregubov noted.
It is more difficult for the Russian army to replace its losses
Russia is facing difficulties in recruiting soldiers to continue the war against Ukraine. Despite record-high signing bonuses, the number of people willing to fight is declining.
Against this backdrop, the Kremlin discussed the possibility of a new large-scale wave of open conscription following the September 2026 elections.
At the same time, according to Tregubov, today’s Russian infantrymen can no longer be considered completely untrained, as they were at the start of the invasion.
"On the other hand, we can't say that there are any super-duper 'Rexes' from some GRU special forces unit, because those 'Rexes' run out quickly," the spokesperson said.
He concluded that a typical Russian infantryman is primarily someone with a civilian background who previously completed mandatory military service, was mobilized a few years later, underwent about a month of training, and then headed to the front.
