Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a recent interview that Russia could close its borders and announce mobilization, suggesting a mass call-up to the army could take place there. Russian officials denied the claim.
Rumors of mobilization have circulated online for a long time without ever being confirmed, according to the report.
Medvedev calls it election propaganda
Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council, denied reports of a possible mobilization in late July. He said the claims were part of propaganda ahead of elections, aimed at destabilizing the situation in Russia and creating negative sentiment. He noted that social media posts had circulated urging citizens to sign contracts with the Armed Forces with the message "don't wait for mobilization, go serve for money," which he said was a paid campaign or a plant.
Duma defense committee members react
Andrei Kolesnik, a member of the State Duma's defense committee, said he was surprised by Zelensky's statements, telling Lenta.ru that he had not heard any talk of mobilization, even behind closed doors, and calling it an ordinary information plant meant to shake Russian society. He suggested Zelensky focus on his own affairs and on events in Ukraine, adding that he suspected Zelensky did not fully understand what was happening in Ukraine, let alone in Russia.
Andrei Krasov, first deputy chairman of the same committee, agreed, telling Lenta.ru that the mobilization reports were complete nonsense.
Putin cites recruitment numbers
President Vladimir Putin has said that 50,000 to 60,000 people join service in the zone of the special military operation every month. More than 400,000 citizens signed contracts with Russia's Armed Forces in 2025, and another 127,000 servicemen joined by the end of April 2026, four months into the year. Medvedev said in March 2026 that this number of volunteers was sufficient to carry out Russia's combat tasks, meaning a new mobilization wave was not needed. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed this in the spring, saying mobilization was not on the agenda.
Foreign Ministry denies exit visa reports
Maria Zakharova, spokesperson for Russia's Foreign Ministry, has previously said Russia will not close its borders, commenting on reports of exit visas. The ministry said the exit visa claims were fabricated to create artificial panic, noting that anti-Russian outlets had spread similar false reports in 2015, 2020 and 2022. The right to freely leave the country is guaranteed under Part 2 of Article 27 of Russia's Constitution.
Zelensky's claim received no coverage in Russian media, according to the report, which was prepared with the anti-fake-news resource Lapsha Media.
