INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
The Kremlin is increasingly turning to creative measures to boost its troops without formally declaring another unpopular mobilization as
ways to address the need for fresh troops on the front line.The Kremlin said last year the number of contract servicemen was growing due to
100,000 people had signed up to fight since the start of the year.However, experts said that the rising payments for soldiers reflect the
is using to entice Russians to sign military contracts:Increased paymentsThe Russian government is offering substantial financial incentives
Moscow, Mayor Sergei Sobyanin increased the one-time payment a soldier could receive to 1.9 million rubles ($22,353) in addition to his
In the Chelyabinsk region, one-time payments have been doubled, with a soldier getting some 705,000 rubles ($8,233) for signing a military
/ Moskva News AgencyThe Moscow and Leningrad regions also lure men to join the army by highlighting the total amount of money, including all
respectively.At least 51 Russian regions have increased payments for signing military contracts at least once since the start of the war in
Ukraine, the independent Novaya Gazeta Europe news website reported last month.AdvertisementsIn addition to financial incentives, the
Russian military has also been employing a robust advertising campaign to target new recruits.This month, the republic of Tatarstan held
a contract in Tatarstan," one of the hosts said.Promotion of military service has also been integrated into public events and holidays.Men
line up outside a regional military conscription office to depart for contract service with the Armed Forces in St
Peter Kovalev / TASSIn Moscow, a mobile enlistment point was seen by a Moscow Times reporter at a World War II memorial park during Victory
An additional enlistment point was also opened last year at the Defense Ministry's military-themed Patriot Park outside Moscow during the
Army-2023 forum.In the city of Norilsk, an Arctic nickel-mining hub in the Krasnoyarsk region, local authorities reportedly sent letters to
people to earn bonuses for enticing acquaintances to sign military contracts, the news outlet Vyorstka reported this month.In the Voronezh
region neighboring Ukraine, local residents were promised 15,000 rubles ($17,391) for each person who would sign a military contract,
Vyorstka said, citing a local recruitment hotline.The governor of the Yaroslavl region, Mikhail Yevrayev, announced this month a similar
scheme that would pay individuals 100,000 rubles ($1,163) for each referral sign-up.Flyers promoting contract military service.Yaroslav
Chingaev / Moskva News AgencySimilar schemes were reported in the Far East republic of Sakha, the Arkhangelsk, Kaluga and Ivanovo regions
and the Yamal-Nenets autonomous district.Businessmen in the Moscow region were reportedly instructed to convince a certain number of
employees to sign military contracts, Vyorstka said, citing a source in the city administration.Do Russians want to sign military
contracts?The rapidly increasing bonuses for signing military contracts point toward a shortage of people willing to serve in the military,
said economist Tatyana Mikhailova.Mikhailova, who analyzed Yandex search engine requests for military service, said that the effect of
raising payments is quite modest, boosting search traffic by about 12% initially before interest gradually returns to normal.In 2024,
searches for information about contract service start to decline as soon as the fifth week after the payments are increased, Mikhailova
said."The economist's argument is straightforward: if prices are increasing rapidly, it indicates that the product is in short supply," the
expert said."If there are already plenty of people willing to go to war, why is there a need for this [bonuses] competition?"A Message from
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