The other war Russia isn’t talking about

The other war Russia isn’t talking about

• Leaked complaints show Russian soldiers facing threats, violence, and harsh punishments
• Wounded soldiers often return to battle without adequate medical treatment.
• Bribes, extortion, and "zeroing out" reveal deep problems in Russia's military

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For years, Russian leaders have described the war in Ukraine as a noble mission carried out by brave and selfless soldiers. But thousands of confidential complaints, quietly filed by soldiers and their families and later exposed online, tell a very different story. Instead of honour and sacrifice, they describe a military system held together by threats, violence and the constant fear of punishment.

The complaints were sent to a government human rights office and were never meant to be seen by the public. Together, they form a rare glimpse into the lives of Russian soldiers far from official speeches and television broadcasts, the New York Times reported.

Discipline enforced with cruelty

Many of the accounts describe punishment that feels more like torture than military discipline. Soldiers say they were beaten, locked in basements or shoved into pits dug in the ground. Some were reportedly tied to trees for hours or even days, sometimes without food, water or access to a toilet.

In several cases, the punishment came after soldiers questioned orders or refused missions they believed were suicidal. Families say the message from commanders was clear: obedience mattered more than survival.

Wounded, sick and still sent to fight

One of the most common complaints comes from families of injured soldiers who were sent back to the front anyway. Men with broken bones, severe head injuries, neurological damage and serious mental health conditions were declared fit for duty and redeployed.

Medical examinations, according to the complaints, were often rushed or meaningless. Some doctors allegedly admitted they had been instructed to clear nearly everyone for service. Soldiers who tried to seek treatment on their own were sometimes accused of desertion and forcibly returned to their units.

In videos attached to some complaints, injured men can be seen limping or using canes as they prepare for combat.

Prison recruits and former captives

As the war has dragged on, Russia has increasingly turned to prisons and detention centres for manpower. Units made up largely of former inmates appear repeatedly in the complaints and are often described as the most brutal environments.

Former prisoners of war also appear in the filings. Some were sent back to combat almost immediately after being released from Ukrainian captivity. Several described panic attacks, disorientation and an inability to function under fire, yet said they were given no time to recover.

A system of bribes and threats

Money plays a dark role in many of the stories. Soldiers and relatives describe commanders demanding bribes in exchange for safer assignments, leave or transfers. Those who could not pay were allegedly sent on the most dangerous assaults.

In some cases, families say commanders took money and still sent soldiers into deadly missions. Others allege that injury compensation payments became another source of extortion, with officers demanding a share.

Complaining or resisting often brought swift retaliation.

“Zeroing out” the unwanted

Among the most disturbing allegations is a practice soldiers call “zeroing out.” The term is used to describe situations where certain soldiers are deliberately sent to their deaths, either through impossible missions or, in some cases, direct violence.

Relatives describe frantic attempts to locate missing sons or husbands. Some were told bodies could not be recovered. Others claim phones were taken from the dead and used to withdraw money, while remains were destroyed to hide what had happened.

For families, the lack of answers has been almost as painful as the losses themselves.

Fear keeps the silence intact

Some complainants say investigations were opened. A few cases were resolved. But many families describe receiving nothing more than standard replies, or no response at all. Fear of retaliation runs through the complaints, with many people warning that speaking out only made things worse.

Because public criticism of the military is tightly restricted in Russia, these stories rarely reach a wider audience. That silence allows the system to continue largely unseen.

A war held together by force

The complaints do not show an army on the verge of collapse. What they reveal instead is something colder: a war sustained by treating soldiers as disposable. Behind the speeches and slogans, the documents suggest, fear and brutality have become tools just as important as weapons on the battlefield.