Russia to Hire Contract Soldiers in Bid to Avoid Unpopular Draft. Russia is preparing to enlist more contract soldiers as it presses its invasion of Ukraine, aiming to avoid at least for now another mass call-up that could undermine popular support for the war
Also older generations that lived through the 90s know what a collapse of the Russian state means. For them it is a terrifying thought to have to live through that … again.
To top that off, It is not as if they have any alternatives. Even Navalny was a right wing scumbag who though Crimea belonged to russia … and he was considered the good guy.