Authorities in the Ural Mountains region of Perm will give out lump sum payments for every newborn child of a soldier fighting in Moscow’s war against Ukraine, regional governor Dmitry Makhoninsaid Wednesday.“We’ll provide a one-time cash payment to the spouse of the special military operation participant upon the birth of a child,” Makhonin wrote on Telegram, citing high public demand for social support measures.He said the payments will amount to 128,000 rubles ($1,500) for each child born after Jan.

1, 2024.The announcement follows President Vladimir Putin’s efforts to encourage Russian women to have more children amid flagging birthrates, the loss of tens of thousands of men in the war and a mass flight of Russians abroad.With Russia’s population declining for several consecutive years, Putin in January declared 2024 “the year of a family,” vowing to increase state support for “young mothers.”Russian officials have followed in the Kremlin leader’s steps with calls to ban abortion, while on Thursday, the Justice Ministry said it would push to have “childfree ideology” outlawed in the country.Despite several measures aimed at incentivizing childbirth, Russia’s birth rate remains below its death rate.