Russia is now reportedly offering monetary rewards for mobilized soldiers who destroy or capture Ukrainian military equipment, newsweek transmits.
Men drafted as part of Russian President Vladimir Putin‘s partial mobilization decree will receive 300,000 rubles ($4,980) for a destroyed Ukrainian plane, 200,000 rubles ($3,320) for a helicopter, 100,000 rubles ($1,660) for a tank, and 50,000 rubles ($830) each for drones, armored personnel carriers, combat vehicles, missile systems, according to the Zvezda TV channel of the Russian Defense Ministry.
“[Russia will also] pay some of the most distinguished servicemen for the destruction of enemy manpower, as well as the solution of other assigned tasks—up to 100,000 rubles,” Zvezda reported.
Putin already announced on November 3 that he would pay citizens who were drafted as part of his September 21 mobilization order 195,000 rubles ($3,237) per month. Those payments came amid reports of the dwindling morale of his troops and anger that they were not receiving their salaries.
“The mobilized will be paid for the destroyed and captured equipment of the nationalists, as well as for success in battle…if we add monthly payments to this, we get a good amount—assistance to the most mobilized and his relatives,” it said on Telegram.
Earlier, Russian Deputy Defense Minister Tatyana Shevtsova said that mobilized citizens would receive payments for next month ahead of schedule, by December 25.
News of the latest monetary rewards comes amid reports of huge equipment losses in Russia.
The United Kingdom Ministry of Defense said on November 3 that in the middle of October, Russian forces were losing more than 40 armored vehicles a day, which is roughly the equivalent of a battalion’s worth of equipment.
Meanwhile, over recent weeks Russia has been forced to turn to Belarusian stocks to acquire at least 100 additional tanks and infantry fighting vehicles.
On October 27, Russia acknowledged for the first time that it doesn’t have enough equipment for mobilized soldiers in its war against Ukraine.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that there are issues with equipment for the hundreds of thousands of men being sent to fight in Ukraine and that a newly-formed council created by Putin is working on resolving problems with equipment.
Regional authorities are working on providing “the missing gear,” Peskov said, noting that Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov “is personally responsible for this” as part of Putin’s new council.
