Russia Raises Military Enlistment Payouts as It Struggles to Fill Army Ranks

Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence has uncovered that Russia has significantly increased financial incentives for citizens who voluntarily enlist to fight Moscow’s war against Ukraine.

According to a post published by HUR  on March 23, in some regions, the one-time signing bonus has been raised to over 2 million rubles (around $ 23,800) since the beginning of this year. In the Samara region, recruits are reportedly being offered nearly 4 million rubles (around $47,500) to join.

“The main pool of these so-called ’volunteers’ consists of people in difficult financial situations and radicalized youth who are easily influenced by propaganda,” HUR wrote.

The Ukrainian intelligence added that the Kremlin’s regular increases in financial bonuses are a forced measure, due to its growing struggle to replenish military units.

On February 14, a representative of HUR reported that Russia was intensifying its military registration monitoring, starting with school-aged youth, and forcibly conscripting men in temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine.