Rising Casualty Numbers Prompt Putin to Slash Compensation

On November 13th, Vladimir Putin signed a new decree cutting the compensation that soldiers wounded in Ukraine would receive from the Kremlin. The move sparked speculation that Moscow was under a cash crunch. 

According to Newsweek’s breakdown of the decree, medical payouts to those wounded in Ukraine will be limited to 3 million rubles, or about $30,000 dollars, for those who are severely injured in the conflict. 

The same sum of money was available to any soldier injured in Ukraine but the decree now limits what those who suffer less severe injuries can claim with some injuries only now worth one million rubles ($10,000) to 100,000 rubles (1,000).

New guidelines from the Kremlin outlined in the decree reserve the largest payouts for soldiers who suffer the worst injuries, or what the Russian government terms Section I injuries—which include a variety of major injuries. 

Soldiers who suffer significant damage to their organs like brain damage or spinal cord injuries, as well as those who break limbs or fracture ribs fall under Section I injuries and are entitled to the largest medical payouts from the Kremlin.

Less severe injuries like concussions, minor fractures, gunshot wounds, and anything that doesn’t affect major organs fall under Section II injuries. These injuries will only be paid out a maximum of one million rubles or $10,000 dollars according to Newsweek. 

Business Insider reported the new decree hasn’t changed the amount of compensation that Russian families are entitled to when a soldier is killed in Ukraine, which was set in March 2022 at 5 million rubles ($50,000).

Russian soldiers who are killed in the war are also still entitled to 7.4 million rubles ($75,000) and those who are deemed unfit for duty because of their injuries are still eligible for a 2.96 million ruble ($29,000) payout in addition to their injury pay. 

The Kremlin’s changes to soldier compensation pay came amid a period of increased Russian casualties in the conflict and alongside recent reports that Moscow has had to pay huge sums of money to injured servicemen. 

An estimate from July by U.S. researchers Thomas Lattanzio of Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies and Harry Stevens from the Center for the National Interest for War on the Rocks suggested Moscow had paid 2.3 trillion rubles ($26 billion) in injury pay by May 2024 according to Newsweek. 

The figure estimated by Lattanzio and Stevens might not sound like a lot but the researchers noted that the amount represented roughly 6% of Russia’s total 2024 budget, and that number has likely only gotten worse. 

Russian losses have accelerated in the latter half of 2024 and gotten worse than in any other period of the war in recent months as multiple offensives across several different frontlines have culminated in a staggering loss of life. 

In a recent interview with The Telegraph, UK Minister of Defense John Healey revealed that British intelligence found that Russian average daily casualties in October 2024 hit a new high in the conflict at a daily average loss rate of 1,345 soldiers per day. 

Healey also said that October had been the worst month of the war for Russian forces since the daily war losses put Russian losses for the month at an estimated  41,980 soldiers. 

May 2024 was the previous worst month of Russian troop losses after Moscow suffered 39,110 losses over the course of the month according to UK Defence Intelligence.

According to The Telegraph, UK Defence Intelligence believes Moscow has suffered more than 696,000 casualties since launching its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. 

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