Russian Authorities in Buryatia Demand Enterprises Send Employees to War or Pay
In Russia's Buryatia republic, businesses are required to provide employees for the war in Ukraine or pay 100,000 rubles per person, according to media reports.
Russian media outlet Dozhd has obtained a document titled "Plan for the selection of candidates for contract service in 2026" for the Muysky district of Buryatia. The document, received by the television channel, shows that local authorities are demanding enterprises to hand over employees for combat in Ukraine.
Companies that are unwilling to send their staff can sign a contract with a specific firm for the "selection of candidates for the Special Military Operation (SVO)". The cost of this service is 100,000 rubles per person. Dozhd notes that for local businesses, this is a huge amount of money.
Budget-funded institutions are also required to provide staff. For instance, the district hospital must provide two employees, despite a shortage of medical workers in Buryatia.
A source close to the republic's administration, who provided the document, said that the Muysky district is just an example, and the same scheme operates throughout Russia. The plan specifies how many people work at each company, how many are men aged 20 to 60, and how many need to be sent to war.
A businessman from Siberia told Dozhd that entrepreneurs were first demanded to provide people for the war in 2024, under threat of "unexpected inspections". In 2025, a "buyout" scheme emerged: businessmen were forced to sign contracts ostensibly for finding candidates to send to war – at 450,000 rubles per person.
Buryatia is one of the leading Russian regions in terms of the number of residents participating in the war against Ukraine and, consequently, in terms of losses. Finding willing volunteers is becoming increasingly difficult, Dozhd reports.
