Russia Refuses To Pay Soldier for Injuries Sustained in 'Friendly Fire'

A Russian military court has refused to pay a soldier compensation for injuries he sustained while fighting in the war in Ukraine because the wounds he received were caused by Russian forces.

A week into Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin pledged that injured men could claim compensation of 3 million rubles ($50,000 at the time), saying it was "our duty to support the families of our fallen and injured war comrades."

In April 2022, Russia's defense ministry published a statement on its website saying that to be eligible for compensation, injuries sustained needed to be among those on an official list—a move that came as reports emerged that Russia was sustaining heavy casualties on the battlefield.

Khizri Kurazov, a member of the National Guard of Russia (Rosgvardiya)—Putin's internal security forces—asked to be paid the promised 3 million rubles as he had received multiple injuries from a mine blast while serving in Ukraine. A certificate from a military hospital confirmed the injuries, local media reported.

But a garrison military court in Kabardino-Balkaria in Russia's North Caucasus region refused to pay the soldier stating that his injuries had been caused by the actions of his fellow Russian troops and therefore were "not related to the direct performance of service and combat missions."

Kurazov reportedly contested the ruling, saying that Putin's presidential decree doesn't say that injuries sustained in Ukraine must be caused by Kyiv's forces.

The National Guard attempted to appeal the ruling, but the military court again ruled that "being wounded while in the Northern Military District zone does not in itself mean acquiring the right to a lump sum payment", and refused to pay Kurazov.

Newsweek has contacted Russia's Foreign Ministry via email for comment.

It's not the first time Russian soldiers have complained about the Kremlin's payment system for injuries sustained in the conflict in Ukraine.

In March, state-run media outlet RIA Novosti appeared to go off-message when it cited human rights activists sounding the alarm over Putin's presidential decree differing from the official list of injuries qualifying for compensation published by the defense ministry.

The outlet published a story titled "We didn't expect this," which featured interviews with frustrated soldiers who were injured while fighting in the war in Ukraine who had not received the compensation promised by Putin.

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