Russian Commanders Charge $39K To Spare Soldiers From Frontline Duty

Russian commanders are demanding extortionate sums from their soldiers who want to be spared frontline duty, with prices going as high as $39,000.

Russian troops can usually get access to such sums by turning over much of the bonuses they are being paid by the government for volunteering in the first place. Commanders are also known to sell weapons, food and the "privilege" of being sent to a hospital if they are wounded. Such corruption appears to be endemic to the Kremlin's military. JL

Verity Bowman reports in The Telegraph:

Russian commanders are charging up to £30,000 (@$39K) to spare soldiers from the front lines in Ukraine. There (have been) multiple cases in which soldiers are offered the chance to pay extortionate sums in exchange for their safety – a practice experts say is systemic. Commanders “reset” soldiers – a euphemism for sending them to their deaths – if they refuse to pay the sums demanded of them, which range from £10,000-£30,000. There have also been cases of Russian commanders not sending wounded troops to hospital if they do not pay for the privilege or refusing to issue documentation to receive state veteran benefits. (And) commanders sold drones, thermal imagers, night-vision gear and humanitarian aid meant for troops

Russian commanders are charging up to £30,000 to spare soldiers from the front lines in Ukraine, military experts have said.

The Telegraph has uncovered multiple cases in which soldiers are offered the chance to pay extortionate sums in exchange for their safety – a practice experts say is systemic.

Video footage recorded by a Russian soldier shows his junior sergeant revealing a corrupt network within the military, involving widespread extortion and the illicit trafficking of weapons.

Denis Kolesnikov claimed commanders “reset” soldiers – a euphemism for sending them to their deaths – if they refused to pay the sums demanded of them, which could range from £10,000-£30,000.

“More than half of our unit were reset by the commanders,” he said. “Everyone has to pay the commanders. If someone doesn’t pay, they’re considered unnecessary, sent to the front, and reset. I personally saw several people killed.” 

The video footage, verified by the Ukrainian Security and Cooperation Centre (USCC), is the latest in a series of claims of corruption levelled against the Russian military.

“Such abuses are indeed widespread and systematic in the Russian army, mainly among front-line units,” Olesia Horiainova, deputy head of the USCC, told The Telegraph.

“Russian military personnel are willing to pay money to avoid going to the front, indicating a serious problem with the motivation of the Russian army against the backdrop of the bloody tactics of the Russian command.”

Soldiers are also said to be coerced into surrendering part of their pay for supposed “unit support”, with commanders frequently pocketing the funds.

The USCC noted widespread cases of commanders stealing equipment, including drones, electronics and other weapons, and forcing soldiers to purchase these items at their own expense. 

In some units, Russian commanders allegedly committed fraud by failing to report the dead and missing, leaving units chronically understaffed with “dead souls” – soldiers listed on paper as active but who have already died.

According to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), there have been cases of Russian commanders deliberately not sending wounded personnel to hospital if they do not pay for the privilege or refusing to issue documentation necessary to receive state veteran benefits. 

“The ISW observed several instances of Russian military commanders committing Russian servicemen to suicidal assaults in Ukraine if they refused to provide a bribe or if they attempted to complain about the corruption in their units,” Kateryna Stepanenko, a Russian research fellow at the ISW, said.

“These instances suggest that corruption and hazing will likely only continue to intensify, especially as the Kremlin continues to deprioritise efforts to professionalise the Russian military in order to maintain Russia’s war effort in Ukraine.”

In the video footage, Mr Kolesnikov claims that soldiers are required to hand over more money after their first payments “run out”.

He purports to have been sent to the city of Rostov after being asked for payments totalling £30,000 before fleeing his unit to go to Moscow. His current whereabouts remain unknown.

“Weapons are constantly taken from the front. I don’t know where they go or for what purpose,” he added.

These abuses, he suggests, are part of a broader pattern of corruption that undermines unit integrity and operational effectiveness. 

The Telegraph identified four other cases of Russian soldiers being extorted by their commanders.

Andrei Perevozchikov of the 36th Bashkir Motorised Rifle Regiment appealed to Vladimir Putin directly in footage shared online.

He alleged that commanders were selling drones, thermal imagers, night-vision gear and humanitarian aid meant for troops, forcing drone operators to spend much or all of their salaries on equipment.

Mr Perevozchikov told the Russian president that those who refused to pay were transferred to assault missions.

The father of Russian serviceman Valery Beloglazov, from military unit 67899, also appealed to Putin in a video shared on social media. The father asked for help finding his son, who went missing after donating his salary to his unit.

Mr Beloglazov allegedly donated 800,000 roubles (£7,750) for drones and other weapons. 

Igor Korshunov, who sustained serious injuries in heavy fighting, was ordered to pay nearly two million roubles to secure a transfer away from the front lines.

After initially commending the soldier and promising a transfer, the commander suddenly demanded money, warning that a refusal would mean a return to the front and possible death.

Serviceman Armen Ovesepyan claims he is forced to give half his monthly salary to commanding officers to be excused from combat missions.

In return for the cash, he reportedly serves in an observation tower and receives the same pay as soldiers on the front line.

“Such cases are a sign of potentially more serious problems that the Russian command will face in the near future,” Ms Horiainova said.