Russia to 'coerce' men into joining Ukraine war as mounting casualties leave 400k troop shortfall

President Vladimir Putin will only meet his latest recruitment targets by 'coercing' men to sign up for a volunteer programme to be mobilised, the Ministry of Defence says.

In the latest defence update, the MOD said that Russian "media reporting suggests that the authorities are preparing to start a major military recruitment campaign with the aim of signing up an additional 400,000 troops.

"Russia is presenting the campaign as a drive for volunteer, professional personnel, rather than a new, mandatory mobilisation.

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"There is a realistic possibility that in practice this distinction will be blurred, and that regional authorities will try to meet their allocated recruitment targets by coercing men to join up."

The MOD's intelligence briefing added: "Russian authorities have likely selected a supposedly 'volunteer model' to meet their personnel shortfall in order to minimise domestic dissent. It is highly unlikely that the campaign will attract 400,000 genuine volunteers.

"However, rebuilding Russia's combat power in Ukraine will require more than just personnel; Russia needs more munitions and military equipment supplies than it currently has available."

This comes as British Challenger 2 tanks arrive in Ukraine and the UK says that 1,900 tanks are among the list of Russia's heavy losses during the Ukraine war.