Mass resignations see Russian Interior Ministry lose 5,000 employees in July

Minister laments ‘critical’ staff shortage

Russian Interior Minister Vladimir Kolokoltsev has revealed that the ministry is experiencing personnel shortages at an official meeting on 10 August.

Kolokoltsev noted that Russian regions experience tremendous pressure due to the lack of employees.

“We have a huge shortage of people. I’d say it’s already critical. We had 5,000 staffers resign from the interior agencies last month. It’s a difficult situation,” he said.

The minister called on the relevant agencies to “do everything to minimise these risks”.

In December 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin set the maximum staff numbers of the Interior Ministry as 922,000 for 2023, 934,000 for 2024, and 938,000 for 2025.