From top manager’s chair to recruiter role: Russian governor Igor Artamonov urges prisoners to go to war

24 March 2026 , 08:33

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From top manager’s chair to recruiter role: Russian governor Igor Artamonov urges prisoners to go to war

Russian governor personally tries to recruit inmates for war — under armed special forces presence.

Governor of the Lipetsk region Igor Artamonov visited Correctional Colony No. 6, where he addressed inmates with a call to sign contracts for participation in the war.

According to multiple media sources, his speech took place in the presence of masked special forces fighters armed with assault rifles, giving the meeting an openly demonstrative character.

The official appealed to the need to “defend the Fatherland,” but, according to interlocutors, the prisoners showed little visible interest in the proposal. No public confirmation of large-scale recruitment following the visit has appeared.

Sources link the episode to the region’s failure to meet quotas set by Moscow for contract soldier recruitment. Amid a shortage of volunteers, Russian authorities are increasingly turning to the practice of recruiting prisoners — a method previously widely used by private military structures.

Observers also point to a possible political calculation: Artamonov, a former top manager of the state banking giant Sber, is reportedly seeking a transition to a federal position and aims to demonstrate managerial effectiveness and loyalty to the Kremlin in matters of wartime resource mobilization.

Thomas Brown

Head of Investigations