Authorities in 19 Russian regions start recruiting reservists to protect critical sites including oil refineries amid Ukrainian attacks

Authorities in nearly 20 Russian regions have launched recruitment campaigns for reservists who will be tasked with protecting critical infrastructure, according to a report by the newspaper Kommersant. The measure follows a law signed by Vladimir Putin on Nov. 4. The law allows reservists to be called up for “special training assemblies” in order to protect “critical and other essential facilities.” It authorizes their use not only during wartime, but also in peacetime.

Special reserve units are being formed in at least 19 regions across the country. Some regions began announcing the creation of such groups even before the law was signed. In the Leningrad Region, authorities reported on Oct. 28 that a BARS unit had been established just five days after the bill was submitted for approval to the State Duma, Russia's lower house of parliament.

Recruitment drives are also underway in the republics of Tatarstan and Bashkortostan, the Nizhny Novgorod Region, and Krasnoyarsk Krai, among others. In Bashkortostan, so-called “mobile fire groups” will be tasked with protecting refineries owned by Rosneft subsidiary Bashneft from Ukrainian drone attacks. Critical sites include the refinery Ufaneftekhim, as well as facilities owned by Gazprom.

Since 2024, similar BARS units have been operating in the Russian border regions of Belgorod, Bryansk, and Kursk, where they have also been involved in countering drones. Authorities in Bryansk and Kursk plan to form additional detachments, Kommersant wrote.

The newspaper noted that while the new law does not explicitly limit reservists to service within their home region, that restriction appears in the standard contracts they are required to sign.