Residents in Russia’s Belgorod Oblast to be paid record $31,000 signing bonus for joining army

Belgorod Oblast Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov announced on Oct. 7 that residents in the region will be paid a nationwide record 3 million rubles (about $31,200) through a one-time signing bonus for joining the military.
The additional payments are in line with efforts by Russian officials to entice more citizens to join the military as the country seeks to replenish its military, decimated by high losses in Ukraine.
“The payment will amount to 3 million rubles from all sources: the federal, regional, municipal budgets and extra-budgetary funds,” Gladkov said.
While other regional authorities have also instituted signing bonuses, such as a previous record-high of 2.75 million rubles ($28,600) in the Khanty-Mansi autonomous district, as well as the 1.9 million rubles ($21,200) signing bonus for Moscow residents, the bonus to be paid in Belgorod Oblast is the highest reported nationwide.
The signing bonus will apply to those who enlist in Russia’s Armed Forces between Oct. 7 and the end of 2024, Gladkov said.
Russia’s federal statistics service, Rosstat, said in June 2023 that the average monthly wage across the country was around 65,000 rubles ($735).
While payment to Russian troops varies widely across the country, for comparison, a Moscow resident could earn 433,000 rubles a month ($4,800) in their first year serving in the army, when including their signing bonus. No information was publicly available as to the the average salary for recruits from Belgorod Oblast.
Russia conscripted around 300,000 reservists during a limited mobilization in September 2022 but has sought to avoid a wide-sweeping draft, often targeting recruits from economically weaker regions or migrants.
Instead of ordering a new wave of conscription, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered an increase in the sign-on bonus for new military recruits to serve in Ukraine to 400,000 rubles (over $4,600), effectively doubling the lump-sum payment of 195,000 ($2,260) rubles initially promised to recruits in September 2022.
Ukraine believes that Russia continues to covertly recruit around 30,000 soldiers monthly, allowing the Russian military to balance out its losses.
Amid the Ukrainian military’s incursion into nearby Kursk Oblast, Russian Defense Ministry announced on Aug. 20 that it will establish troop groups in Belgorod, Kursk, and Bryansk oblasts to defend settlements along the Ukrainian border.