Exclusive: A General's Correspondence Details The Wartime Role Of Graft In The Russian Military
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A trove of messages, photos, and videos sent and received by a Russian officer and examined by Schemes and Systema, RFE/RL's Ukrainian and Russian investigative units, provides granular evidence pointing to the pervasive role of bribery in the military amid Moscow’s war against Ukraine.
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Russia Exclusive: A General's Correspondence Details The Wartime Role Of Graft In The Russian Military By Yelizaveta Surnacheva , Valeriya Yegoshyna , Kira Tolstyakova , Schemes and Systema March 03, 2026 14:37 CET Exclusive: A General's Correspondence Details The Wartime Role Of Graft In The Russian Military Share Share Print “War is war, but don’t forget about the cash. Get yours,” a Russian officer texted to a subordinate who was about to succeed him as commander of a division fighting in Ukraine, apparently advising him to take advantage of the moneymaking opportunities presented by the position. “Delete this message later,” the officer added. A trove of text and audio messages, photos, and videos purportedly sent and received over a three-year period by the officer, Roman Demurchiev, and provided to reporters from Schemes , the investigative unit of RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service, includes ample evidence of possible war crimes committed by Russian forces in Ukraine. WATCH: The Original Documentary By Schemes On The Russian General's Messages (in Ukrainian with English subtitles). The materials examined by Schemes and Systema, RFE/RL’s Russian investigative unit, also paint a picture of pervasive corruption, including bribery and nepotism, in sometimes granular detail. They open a window on the way power dynamics are structured in the Russian military, who answers to whom in the hierarchy, and how the system operates. Working with forensics laboratories in the United States and data researchers in Germany, Schemes verified the authenticity of the communications, which were provided by a person serving in the Ukrainian military. RFE/RL agreed not to disclose the person's identity or how they obtained the files. The Power Of Money Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine just over four years ago, several high-level Russian military officers have been dismissed and accused of corruption, with upticks in cases coming after Wagner mercenary group founder ...
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