Russia Betrays Returning Soldiers

Betrayed at Home: Russia’s War Heroes Robbed by the System They Fought For

Vladimir Putin, Russia's President, pledged a reception fit for heroes for soldiers coming back from Ukraine. Instead, many discover a grim reality. They face systemic corruption, scams, and violent theft, often at the hands of the very state officials meant to protect them. Their wartime pay, a powerful lure for men from impoverished regions, makes them targets, turning their homecoming into a bitter struggle for survival.

The Kremlin’s Call to Arms

Since launching its full-scale invasion of Ukraine at the start of February 2022, the Kremlin has dramatically swelled the ranks of its military. A key strategy involved offering substantial monetary rewards, which successfully tripled the army's size. These packages were designed to entice a steady stream of volunteers, particularly from Russia’s poorer, more remote regions where economic opportunities are scarce. For many young men, the promise of high earnings overshadowed the immense dangers of the front line. The government effectively weaponised economic desperation to fuel its war machine. This recruitment model, however, has had profound and damaging consequences for the soldiers it enlisted.

A Life-Changing Sum

The financial offer made to recruits is transformative, on paper at least. A volunteer can earn up to 5.2 million roubles (£47,000) in the initial twelve months of enlistment. This sum is supplemented by potential payouts for injuries, which can reach an additional 4 million roubles. When combined, these payments can represent a total equating to six times the nation's average wage in Russia. For individuals in struggling provincial towns, this amount of money is often irresistible. It presents a rare chance to escape debt, buy property, and secure a future, making the life-or-death gamble of war seem like a viable economic choice.

One Soldier’s Story of Betrayal

Nikita Khursa, a 39-year-old welder, represents the stark reality behind the Kremlin's promises. Hailing from a settlement inside the Rostov region, he went to participate in the Ukrainian war for monetary reasons, like thousands of others. After a few months on the battlefront during summer 2024, an injury sent him home with shrapnel located close to his heart and a significant bonus payment for his wounds. He and Oksana, his wife, planned to use their savings and the bonus to finally purchase an apartment. But their dream quickly unravelled, not on the battlefield, but in their own homeland.

A Dream Turned to Dust

One evening, following a heated argument about his drinking, Khursa stormed out of his home. Drunk, barefoot, and upset, he carried their entire savings—2.66 million roubles (£24,000)—in a simple plastic bag. In his intoxicated state, he impulsively resolved to journey to Rostov and acquire a property on his own. He did not get far. Noticing the bag of cash, traffic police pulled him over. Khursa explained he had recently come back from the fighting, hoping for understanding from fellow state employees. His plea fell on deaf ears.

Robbed by the State

One of the policemen initially seemed sympathetic, suggesting they let Khursa go. The other, however, saw only the money. He reportedly silenced his partner, exclaiming about the large sum of cash. They took nearly all of it, leaving Khursa with nothing. This act was a direct contradiction of President Putin's rhetoric, which casts returning soldiers as national heroes and the foundation of a "fresh elite." Instead of receiving a hero's reception, Khursa was preyed upon by corrupt officials, his sacrifice on the battlefield meaningless to those in a position of power.

An Escape Clause for Criminals

Making Khursa’s situation even more galling, the two policemen who robbed him avoided justice. After Khursa went to the authorities about the crime, indictments for theft and misuse of authority were brought against them. However, the case did not proceed to a courtroom. The officers took advantage of a recent law that allows individuals suspected of crimes to have their charges suspended or dropped entirely if they enlist for the Ukrainian conflict. Both men enrolled in the armed forces and deployed to the battlefront, using the war as a shield from prosecution. Khursa never saw his money again.

The ‘Fight or Jail’ Law

This legal mechanism is a cornerstone of Russia's recent recruitment strategy. President Putin signed amendments into law allowing criminal defendants to halt their own prosecutions by joining the military. Previously, this option was only available to those already convicted or whose cases had not yet gone to court. The new rules extend the offer to suspects whose trials are already underway. Charges can be completely expunged if the individual receives a state award or is discharged due to injury, age, or the conflict’s conclusion. This creates a perverse incentive, allowing criminals to wash their records clean through military service.

A System Riddled with Loopholes

The law, however, contains exceptions. It does not apply to those accused of the most serious felonies, such as treason, terrorism, espionage, or sexual offences against minors. Despite these limitations, the legislation significantly expands the pool of potential recruits for the armed forces. Lawmakers have openly stated that the amendments are designed to bolster the number of contract servicemen. Investigative reports suggest the defence ministry aims to recruit a substantial portion of the tens of thousands of individuals currently awaiting trial across Russia, turning the justice system into a feeder for the front line.

Predatory Scams at the Airport

The corruption targeting soldiers is not limited to individual acts of extortion by police. It is often organised and systemic. At Moscow’s airports, police officers are under suspicion for alerting taxi driver gangs to the arrival of servicemen coming back from Ukraine. Knowing these soldiers would be carrying large sums of money, the cabbies would propose what seemed a fair price for the journey home. Upon arrival, however, the price would inflate dramatically, sometimes by as much as 15 times the original amount. Soldiers who resisted the extortion were met with threats.

Image Credit - Freepik

Drugged, Robbed, and Abandoned

In some of the most sinister cases, returning servicemen were purportedly drugged or deliberately intoxicated by these criminal gangs. While the soldier was incapacitated, the thieves would use their financial cards, draining their accounts before the victim could realise what had happened. Investigators believe one such gang managed to steal at least 1.5 million roubles through this predatory scheme. These incidents paint a horrifying picture of a homecoming where returning soldiers, instead of being protected, are marked as easy targets for sophisticated criminal enterprises operating with impunity, sometimes in collusion with law enforcement.

Theft from Within the Ranks

The threat to a soldier's earnings comes not only from outside criminals but also from within the military itself. In some units, commanders have systematically stolen from their own subordinates. One serviceman reported that his platoon was forbidden from visiting local shops and was instructed to give their financial cards and corresponding PINs to a senior non-commissioned officer. This officer allegedly collected around fifty pay cards, a lot of which belonged to men later declared to be unaccounted for in combat. He is believed to have absconded with the funds, with some cards holding balances of up to 2 million roubles.

Exploitation at the Recruitment Centre

The theft often begins the moment a soldier enlists. During October 2024, authorities detained three employees from a recruitment office in the Vladimir region. They stood accused of stealing over 11 million roubles from new recruits. Their method was brutally simple: they kept the mobile SIMs which were given to the new soldiers, which were linked to their new salary accounts. This gave the corrupt officials direct access to the funds, allowing them to siphon off payments before the soldiers even knew they had been paid. The recruits were sent to the front lines, unaware they were already victims of theft.

A Pattern of Deceit

This was not an isolated incident. In the Belgorod region, which borders Ukraine, an official is thought to have employed a similar tactic. The individual supposedly connected the bank accounts of new enlistees to his personal phone number, giving him control over their finances. He is believed to have pilfered over a million roubles before his scheme was discovered. These cases highlight a systemic vulnerability in the payment process, where the very individuals entrusted with managing soldiers' affairs are the ones exploiting them for personal gain, betraying their trust from the outset.

The Human Cost of Corruption

For soldiers like Nikita Khursa, the consequences are devastating. The trauma of being robbed by his own country's police compounded the psychological and physical wounds of war. Speaking from a medical facility close to Saint Petersburg, he reflected on the injustice, stating that his anger eventually gave way to a sense of grim acceptance. He now awaits a military doctor's evaluation on if he is required to go back to the battlefront. Under the terms of his contract, he must continue to serve until the conflict concludes, a war that has already cost him his health, his savings, and his marriage.

Image Credit - Freepik

A Future Lost

The dream of purchasing an apartment is gone. Khursa and Oksana, his wife, have separated. He explained that he did not want to hold his wife to a man serving in the armed forces and facing an uncertain future. With shrapnel still lodged close to his heart, he sees no path forward for himself in civilian life. The army, despite its dangers and the corruption within its orbit, now represents his only source of stability. It offers him a place to live and a sense of purpose, however fraught with peril. "The army is the only thing that saves you, it provides you with shelter," he stated.

The Hollow Promise of a ‘New Elite’

Khursa’s experience stands in stark contrast to the grand vision articulated by Vladimir Putin. The president has repeatedly claimed that veterans of the Ukraine war would form Russia’s “new elite,” replacing a decadent and unpatriotic establishment. He has promised them positions in government, state corporations, and public life, rewarding their loyalty and sacrifice with status and influence. Yet the reality on the ground for many is one of exploitation and neglect. The very system that sent them to war is the one that preys on them when they get home.

A Recruitment Strategy’s Flaw

The Kremlin's reliance on large monetary rewards to entice soldiers has created a critical vulnerability. While it solves the political problem of avoiding unpopular mass conscription, it fills the ranks with individuals motivated primarily by money rather than patriotic duty. This dynamic, as some analysts point out, can weaken military professionalism and cohesion. Furthermore, the large sums of cash flowing to soldiers—often unbanked and carried in person—make them predictable and lucrative targets for a wide array of criminals and corrupt officials. The recruitment strategy itself fosters an environment ripe for exploitation.

The Pervasive Nature of Graft

Corruption is not a new problem in Russia, but the war has opened up vast new avenues for it. The huge amounts of money allocated to military spending, including soldier salaries and benefits, are difficult to track. This lack of oversight creates a fertile ground for graft at every level. From commanders demanding bribes to avoid dangerous assignments to officials embezzling funds meant for recruits, the system is plagued by those seeking to profit from the conflict. Soldiers become cogs in a machine that is not only fighting a war but also enriching a network of corrupt actors.

Broken Promises and Unpaid Dues

Beyond outright theft, many soldiers and their families struggle with a more mundane form of financial abuse: promised payments that never arrive. Online forums and appeals to lawmakers are filled with complaints from relatives who say that salary bonuses, injury compensation, and other benefits have been delayed or denied without explanation. Military prosecutors do not publish data on such cases, making the full scale of the problem impossible to determine. Bureaucratic inefficiency, exacerbated by the chaos of war, means that paperwork for payments is often lost or improperly processed, leaving families in financial limbo.

A Nation’s Unsettling Future

As the war continues, Russia is creating a large and growing class of veterans. Many will return with deep physical and psychological scars, their experiences compounded by betrayal and financial ruin. The long-term social consequences of this reality are profound. The state’s failure to protect its own soldiers and honour its commitments risks fostering deep-seated resentment and instability. The “new elite” that Putin envisioned may instead become a disenfranchised and volatile segment of society, their loyalty eroded by the very system they were asked to defend.