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Russia issued a new decree on Wednesday limiting payouts to injured soldiers based on their injuries.
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For soldiers with less serious injuries, the $30,000 payout has now been reduced to $10,000, or even $1,000.
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Previous foreign estimates showed that Russia had to spend 6% of its budget on paying victims.
The Kremlin on Wednesday introduced new restrictions on medical payouts to injured Russian troops, quickly issuing a decree allowing only those with serious injuries to receive the promised $30,000.
Russia had previously promised at the start of its war against Ukraine that those injured in the fighting would each receive a one-time payout of 3 million rubles, or about $30,000.
But Russian leader Vladimir Putin’s new instruction on Wednesday reduces that payout to $10,000 for less serious injuries and $1,000 for other cases.
The decree was approved by Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, who heads the country’s parliament, and passed into law at 4 p.m. the same day.
Under the Kremlin’s new guidelines, soldiers will only receive the full $30,000 if they suffer “Section I” injuries, or injuries that endanger their life or health or could cause significant damage to their organs.
These include serious spinal injuries, brain damage, genital rupture, rib fractures, broken limbs, or damage to organs such as the lungs or kidneys.
Less serious injuries for which a soldier is eligible for $10,000 are listed under “Section II.” These are considered temporary wounds, such as minor fractures, concussions, first- and second-degree burns to the eyes, ankle fractures, and gunshot wounds that do not affect organs.
Russia still adheres to a law Putin signed in March 2022 that entitles those killed in the war to about 7.4 million rubles, or $75,000, and 5 million rubles, or $50,000, for their families.
Those injured and deemed ‘unfit for duty’ are entitled to an additional R2.96 million in addition to their injury benefits.
The new decision comes about a week after Russian media reported that authorities had discussed a review of personal injury compensation.
Anna Tsivileva, a Russian deputy defense minister, told reporters on November 5 that doctors and hospitals had said the payouts did not take into account the severity of soldiers’ injuries.
Meanwhile, mounting casualties from Russia’s massive advances in eastern Ukraine are likely to increase the cost of payouts to the wounded and the families of the dead. Britain estimated that on average as many as 1,500 Russian soldiers were killed or wounded every day in October.
In July, two Western researchers estimated that Russia would have to spend about 2.3 trillion rubles, now worth about $23 billion, on payouts for the dead and injured. That was about 6% of the country’s total budget for 2024.
The Kremlin press office did not respond to a request for comment sent by Business Insider outside regular business hours.
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