Russian recruitment campaign blunder: Ukrainian soldier on army posters

In Kursk, banners have appeared encouraging people to sign a contract with the Russian army. Annually, volunteers can earn around €10,100. The creators of the poster project placed a Ukrainian soldier holding a child on it. Both Russians and Ukrainians immediately noticed the mistake.

On the Russian army posters, next to the slogan "For ours!", there is a cut-out figure of a soldier holding a child. However, residents of the Kursk region, who have had the opportunity to observe the uniforms of both Russian and Ukrainian troops for several weeks, could easily determine that the type of camouflage worn by the man on the poster is part of the uniform of the latter group.

Using a reverse search tool, one can easily find this photo on stock photography websites, confirming that Vadym Ghirda originally took it for the Associated Press agency in March 2022. The description states that it depicts a Ukrainian soldier holding a child, crossing the Irpin River on an improvised path under a bridge destroyed by a Russian airstrike.

Although this element of the campaign encouraging contract service in the Russian army will not significantly replenish its personnel, the authorities try to persuade people to contract service using financial incentives. And they are effective at it.

According to findings by journalists from "Important Stories", the pace of recruitment for contract soldiers in Ukraine this year has increased sixfold compared to last year. In the first half of 2023, just under 27,000 Russians signed a contract with the Ministry of Defence, and in the same period this year, it was over 166,000. The report's authors emphasise that these figures may be slightly different, as due to payment delays, some people are included in the statistics not for the current quarter but for the next one.

At the end of July this year, the Russian authorities significantly increased the rates for signing a contract. While earlier from the federal budget, a candidate sent to the war received 200,000 rubles (around €4,000), in the summer, this amount doubled. And it still constitutes a smaller part of what they will earn. The main financial burden of contract soldiers has been shifted to regional authorities. Their contributions vary, but on average, it is 600,000 rubles. Hence, signing a one-year contract with the army amounts to earnings of about 1 million rubles (around €10,100).

According to the "Verstka" service, it can be even five times higher. This is the case in Moscow. Its mayor, Sergey Sobyanin, introduced a one-time payment of 1.9 million rubles plus an additional 50,000 rubles monthly. Therefore, a Muscovite can earn 5.2 million rubles (€53,000) during a year of service.

In some districts, financial benefits are also available to those who convince a family member or friend to sign a contract with the army. This is all to avoid jeopardising the image of the authorities in the Kremlin and not announcing another "partial" mobilisation.