[Goose]

Russia has possibly run out of reservists to throw at the war.  Even if they declare it a war and bring up conscripts, it would take a minimum of six months, and more like a year, to get them ready for combat.

It depends on what one is expecting them to do and the condition of the force they will be joining. In WWII, basic training was 13 weeks (it varied a bit depending on need). At that point you could get sent to a combat unit that already existed and had an experienced NCO/officer group to hopefully prevent you from getting killed before you actually knew what you were doing. Much more training was necessary for those going into newly-formed units. In Vietnam, basic plus AIT was 16 weeks. At that point you were good to go as a replacement. We weren't forming new units at that time. So, Russia could train up conscripts to fill out existing units in three to four months. If they are creating new units or restoring a unit that is combat ineffective, much more training would be needed, probably closer to at least nine months, as "ojt" wouldn't be possible. You can't conform to the guy next to you if he is clueless as well. If you want a competent mechanized infantry division created from a cadre of experienced folks and mostly draftees/OCS company grade officers, the rule of thumb is a year based on past experience in the US. I also suggest this rule applies to the Ukraine as well as Russia.

As I said, big *if true*



BC

It may depend a lot on how willing these "reservists" are to report for duty. There are probably many (most?) on the books who have no intention of reporting when called. Even at the best of times this would be true in Russia, and with the next stop being Ukraine, I suspect it is pretty universal. Nobody likes getting killed in a "non-war".

[Goose]

Russia has possibly run out of reservists to throw at the war.  Even if they declare it a war and bring up conscripts, it would take a minimum of six months, and more like a year, to get them ready for combat.

It depends on what one is expecting them to do and the condition of the force they will be joining. In WWII, basic training was 13 weeks (it varied a bit depending on need). At that point you could get sent to a combat unit that already existed and had an experienced NCO/officer group to hopefully prevent you from getting killed before you actually knew what you were doing. Much more training was necessary for those going into newly-formed units. In Vietnam, basic plus AIT was 16 weeks. At that point you were good to go as a replacement. We weren't forming new units at that time. So, Russia could train up conscripts to fill out existing units in three to four months. If they are creating new units or restoring a unit that is combat ineffective, much more training would be needed, probably closer to at least nine months, as "ojt" wouldn't be possible. You can't conform to the guy next to you if he is clueless as well. If you want a competent mechanized infantry division created from a cadre of experienced folks and mostly draftees/OCS company grade officers, the rule of thumb is a year based on past experience in the US. I also suggest this rule applies to the Ukraine as well as Russia.

As I said, big *if true*



BC

It may depend a lot on how willing these "reservists" are to report for duty. There are probably many (most?) on the books who have no intention of reporting when called. Even at the best of times this would be true in Russia, and with the next stop being Ukraine, I suspect it is pretty universal. Nobody likes getting killed in a "non-war".