Russia’s military is offering recruits in the southern Samara region a record 4 million rubles ($40,600) to join high-risk assault squads in Ukraine, the independent investigative news website Vyorstka reported Friday.
New soldiers are informed of their assignments to these assault groups shortly before deployment, according to the report. Some recruits and their wives cited survival rates as low as two out of 50 soldiers returning from recent attacks.
The amount of training provided varies between two days and two weeks, highlighting the Russian military’s urgent need for frontline reinforcements.
“This 4 million right here is easy money,” one unnamed soldier who traveled to Samara for the one-time payment told Vyorstka. “Of course, they’re going to send us to get slaughtered. Nobody in our country just throws money around.”
The soldier said he submitted a written request to cancel his contract after learning about the deadly nature of the deployment. Vyorstka did not specify whether his request was granted.
The Samara regional government increased its one-time enlistment payments for a month-long recruitment campaign from Jan. 1 to Feb. 1, offering 3.6 million rubles, with Russia’s Defense Ministry contributing an additional 400,000 rubles.
“Of course, demand is high. All of Russia poured into [the region],” one recruiter was quoted as saying.
Vyorstka also reported that recruiters in Samara are receiving higher salaries, with regional authorities allocating 97 million rubles ($981,000) for their wages in 2024.
Analysts say Russia’s rapidly increasing enlistment bonuses indicate a shortage of people willing to serve in the military.
Officials, including Deputy Security Council Chairman Dmitry Medvedev, have boasted of high monthly recruitment numbers without acknowledging the rising financial incentives.
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