Putin doubles pay for National Guard fighting in Ukraine
Photo: Russian President Vladimir Putin (Getty Images)
Russian President Vladimir Putin has raised payments to the Russian Guard for signing a contract to participate in the war against Ukraine. The payments have been more than doubled, according to Astra.
National Guard troops will now receive a one-time payment of 400,000 rubles. Previously, the amount of the payment was 195,000, which has been in place since November 2022
According to Astra, Russian authorities recently revised their system of financial rewards for soldiers. Putin recently signed a decree reducing injury compensation payments by up to 30 times. However, in another decree, he raised payouts for injuries leading to disability to 1 million rubles. Additionally, Russian volunteers are now required to pay for military equipment lost in combat.
"All this comes amid an unprecedented increase in one-time contract signing bonuses for 2024. Regions are competing to send the highest number of contractors to the war through these payments. The current record is held by the Belgorod region, where signing an indefinite contract with the Ministry of Defense can get 3 million rubles," Astra reports.
Russian army
In early autumn, Putin signed a decree to increase the size of the Russian army by 180,000 personnel, bringing it to 2.39 million, including 1.5 million servicemen. This marks the third decree to expand the armed forces since the war began in February 2022.
However, according to British intelligence, these plans face challenges due to significant losses in Ukraine and recruitment issues. During the war, Russia lost 610,000 people killed and wounded.
According to Oleksandr Pavliuk, Commander of the Ukrainian Ground Forces, the number of Russian troops in Ukraine had risen to 510,000 by May 2024, significantly more than at the start of the invasion.
