By Alexander Golts, Moscow Times Commentary

Jan. 1 was supposed to have been a defining moment for the armed forces. By this date, a federal program to switch a portion of the conscripted armed forces to professional contract duty was supposed to have been completed. The plan, which was initiated in 2003, emerged as a compromise between the Kremlin and the military's top brass.

If what the military officials claim is true about the success of the new professional units, it might be possible to congratulate the armed forces on even the most modest steps taken toward building a new and improved army.

Initial plans called for 144,000 sergeants and soldiers to switch to contract duty. Now the top brass are reporting only 100,000 soldiers on contract duty. At the same time, Colonel General Vasily Smirnov has said 20 percent of all sergeant and soldier positions needed for the new professional units remain "vacant."

The larger problem, however, is not so much the inadequate number of professional contract soldiers, but the terribly low quality of their services. ...Colonel General Alexei Maslov, commander of the Ground Forces, acknowledged: "In some aspects, they are no better prepared than corresponding units of conscripts."

...many servicemen were forced into signing contracts through the use of deceit, fraud, psychological pressure and physical violence.

In private conversations, high-ranking military officials admit that during the past year they have managed to recruit only enough new soldiers to replace those who have deserted.
More at the link