A bill on voluntary military conscription for women could be introduced in the lower house of the Russian parliament by February 1, 2013, a Russian lawmaker said.

"We will be surveying the public opinion until January 15 and spend the rest of January discussing our initiative with colleagues," Tatyana Moskalkova from the Just Russia faction in the State Duma and a co-author of the bill told reporters on Tuesday.

"If everything goes well, we will introduce this bill in the State Duma by February 1," Moskalkova said.

She said the idea of voluntary conscription for women had been prompted by a large number of letters from young women who expressed the desire to serve in the military.

The lawmaker said the proposed mechanism of military draft for women is modeled after the Israeli army, but would be based on the principle of voluntary service.

At present, the Russian legislation allows women to serve in the military only under contracts.

Source: Voice of Russia