The Ukrainian military carried out an attack that was devastating during New Year’s Day hitting a structure housing. Recently mobilized Russian army personnel in the region that is under occupation of Donetsk.

Russia’s response to the crisis has been awe-inspiring. The defense ministry made the unusual move of immediately announcing. That the deaths of 63 (later revising the number by 89). Soldiers the highest number of casualties admitted for any event. Since the beginning of Russia’s assault on Ukraine beginning in the month of February, 2022.

What’s also been awe-inspiring is the absence of a united public protest against. The announcement of massive military deaths of mothers of Russian troops fighting for Ukraine.

This ongoing study employs the analysis of words that used to describe the war in Russian media. As well as social media to study gendered responses to the conflict in Ukraine. Although our research is in its early stages We are observing that the reactions. Of mothers of soldiers aren’t always straightforward.

The time that Russia’s mass attack on Ukraine began the world watched. For the mothers of soldiers from Russia to lead. The opposition of the people towards the special military operation, and they were right.

Mothers Powered By Military Power

One of Russia’s most popular and most respected civil society organizations the Committee of the Mothers of Soldiers of Russia (CSMR) and its network of committees was an avenue for protest to Russia’s wars that not popular that raged in Afghanistan and Chechnya in particular, by defending the rights of soldiers who conscripted.

The CSMR and the committees throughout Russia offered free guidance regarding legal options to delay or avoid conscription. Some even challenged the ministry of defense in court to order the government to fulfill it’s legal obligation to soldiers.

But the movement has changed significantly in the last decade. It is no longer a coherent and unified force They have transformed into a loose group of organizations. Some committees show an unwavering support for the traditional values, patriotism, and the military, while other are in the forefront of human rights reform and oppose militarism.

Many mothers first contacted their local committees to assist in obtaining information on their sons who sent to Ukraine. The conflict continued to rage however, the mothers of soldiers have not been able to express their grievances and to raise their voices.

Military Social Media

They’ve instead taken to social media first to find posts that could give them information about their loved ones, then to build digital communities to serve as an alternative to the traditional committees of mothers of soldiers.

Without the support of the committees of mothers of soldiers with their vast network and expertise motherhood, Russian mothers of soldiers in Ukraine cannot united in their voices. Instead, they organize in a less granular manner usually around the units their sons in, a specific military incident, or regions that their sons drafted from. The messages they send out often scattered and frequently inconsistent, though there some common threads.

They focused on, in the first place, on the wellbeing of their children, even though their concerns for their children don’t necessarily translate into an open protest against the war.

The demands of mothers often framed with patriotic language. They can be simultaneously in support of the Kremlin and criticizing the military’s leadership in Russia, such as by urging the government to help prepare their children better for battle.

Army Provides Employment

In many regions of Russia where there is a high level of poverty The family’s financial security depends on the service in the military for their kids. The military can provide employment as well as the chance to have a successful career.

For the mothers of these women the son of a soldier who dies in battle is a tragedy in two parts one of which is the loss of a loved ones as also the loss of the income that provides the lives of others. This is why certain mothers of the fallen soldiers in Russia are begging the government to offer them financial compensation.

Partial mobilization partial mobilization announced by Vladimir Putin in September has added another layer of complexity, by introducing the new category of mothers of soldiers women who may not want to become soldiers.

The men’s inability to mobilize has placed them in direct, but not secret protest against the state. They have protested at the steps of the military recruitment offices and assisted men in their attempts to get out of the country.

In light of the very low resistance of mothers of soldiers to the conflict The Russian government could expect to give no focus on this particular group. However, the reality is quite the contrary.

Mothers Of Military Soldiers

The Russian state seeks the trust of the mothers of soldiers. It is compelled to address their concerns since particularly during wartime they enjoy a large amount of respect from the public in moral and ethical respect. However it doesn’t believe that they will spontaneously express what they believe to be the correct views.

The Kremlin’s plan is to stage well-planned shows that create the illusion of unison (see the main image). One prime example is Putin’s television appearance in November with women that could be mothers of soldiers but aren’t normal.

They were all carefully chosen by their links to regional or national political elites. While others were selected for their affiliation with patriotic organizations who openly endorse war.

What does this mean for the mothers of soldiers from Russia? Our research is in progress However, we do not expect mothers of soldiers to take part. In protests of mass scale against the Russian invasion into Ukraine. However, we do observe more subtle types of resistance, which have been aiding. In the decline of Russian society’s support of the conflict in Ukraine.