The Russian Ministry of Defense has apparently changed its rules when it comes to the fate of its soldiers injured from the ongoing war in Ukraine.
According to a report by Russian independent media outlet iStories, severely injured or disabled Russian troops are now being sent back to the frontline to fight again.
Medical examiners are reportedly told to still consider injured soldiers with frontline experience for redeployment, regardless of the severity of their wounds.
As a result, the Russian military now has units of “hundreds of disabled soldiers” to be sent back to the war-torn nation despite most of them not having been properly cared for.
Family Testimonies
The wife of a Russian soldier named Mikhail told iStories that her husband was signed off by a medic to fight again in Ukraine despite being hit by shrapnel in his leg.
He was categorized as fit to be returned to active duty.
According to the woman, her partner did not receive adequate care before getting redeployed, and Mikhail is now fulfilling frontline duties with a cane.
“They in the regiment are already laughing through tears – what kind of assault [team has] sticks and on crutches?” she said.
The wife also revealed that her husband had lost all of his teeth in Ukraine. “He has five stumps instead of teeth, and you can’t take a blender with you there,” she added.
A Sign of Depleted Force?
Apart from redeploying severely injured soldiers, the Russian military has taken several controversial steps to increase its combat power in Ukraine.
Earlier this year, Russian President Vladimir Putin approved a law that would mobilize 70-year-olds to fight in the war-torn nation.
His administration also increased military salaries up to 10 times higher to entice civilians to join its ground forces.
According to a recent declassified US intelligence report, the ongoing war has cost Russia 315,000 casualties — nearly 90 percent of the total number of troops it initially sent to Ukraine.