Russian losses in Ukraine are so high that 38% of all personnel spending is now paid out as benefits to families of fallen soldiers, according to an analysis.
Russian casualties in the war on Ukraine are so high that 38 per cent of all personnel spending is on benefits to families of dead soldiers, according to an analysis.
Russia is understood to have suffered twice as many casualties as Ukraine in the war as it has frequently relied on meat-grinder assaults.
Out of the total personnel expenditure of around 5.1 trillion rubles, Russia has spent 38 per cent on death benefits, 33 per cent on salaries, and 20 per cent to regional governments for getting recruits to sign up for the war, according to Re: Russia Project, a think tank.
Russian personnel costs amount to around 90 per cent of the annual budget deficit, laying bare the stress that the war has put Russia under.
Moreover, in another sign of strain that the war has put the Russian economy under, the personnel expenditure increased from 3 trillion rubles in 2023-24 to around 4 trillion rubles in 2025, according to the analysis originally published in Russian.
Russian economy in poor shape as war drags on
The analysis about the economic toll of the war has come weeks after Russian leader Vladimir Putin acknowledged that the economic growth slowed to 1 per cent in 2025 — much lower than the official forecast of 1.5 per cent.
In 2023 and 2024, the Russian economy grew by 3.6 per cent and 4.3 per cent respectively on the back of war-related spending and a manufacturing boom to support the war effort. But the boom and stimulus dried up in 2025 and the growth fell even below downward revisions.
The overall economic strain could force Russia to seek a ceasefire as analysts believe that stopping the war this year would free up around 4 trillion rubles in Russia’s consolidated budget, significantly mitigating a potential budget crisis, as per the analysis.
To meet the requirements of the war, Russia has recruited massively from prisons by offering criminals clemency, lured foreigners with simplified paths to citizenship, and offered fat bonuses to common citizens to make them sign up.
Previously, the Associated Press has reported that various bonuses for joining the military could add up to $50,000 in some provinces, which could be more than twice the average annual income in those provinces.
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