The Daily Populous Saturday August 2nd, 2025 morning edition
Authored by kyivindependent.com and submitted by AdSpecialist6598

Cases of HIV among Russian soldiers have soared 2,000% since the beginning of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, a new report reveals, attributing the rise both to unprotected sex and drug use among troops, and political decisions made by the Kremlin.

According to the report from Carnegie Politika, cases detected in the Russian armed forces increased by 13 times by the end of 2022, and by 20 times by the end of 2024.

"The demographic and economic losses Russia will suffer as a result of this outbreak will have repercussions for decades and may ultimately even exceed the damage it has sustained from its invasion of Ukraine," the report said.

It attributes the rise to several factors including blood transfusions for wounded soldiers, reusing syringes in field hospitals, and soldiers engaging in unprotected sex and drug use.

The report also highlights the wider HIV situation in Russia which since 2022 has been among the top five countries worldwide for new HIV cases, behind South Africa, Mozambique, Nigeria, and India.

"There is no objective reason why HIV should be decreasing across the world — except in Russia. The factors behind this are purely political," the report said.

The Kremlin has taken several steps that have contributed to the rise, often in the name of defending what it calls "traditional values."

Russia placed British musician Elton John's charity that focuses on HIV/AIDS prevention, care, and awareness on its list of "undesirable organizations" over what it called "promotion of non-traditional sexual relations," the Russian Prosecutor General's Office said on April 3.

The non-profit, which was launched in 1992 and is based in the U.S. and the U.K., says it works in over 90 countries "to increase access to health care, tackle LGBTQ+ stigma, and end AIDS."

In their statement, Russian prosecutors claim the charity is "focused on the promotion of non-traditional sexual relations, Western family models, and gender reassignment."

Mountain_Ad_9415 on August 1st, 2025 at 13:50 UTC »

Russia already had the highest HIV rate in Europe before the war. Now it's getting much worse

Gimme_Your_Wallet on August 1st, 2025 at 13:25 UTC »

I wonder how much of that is influenced by the Russian convicts being conscripted. Rape is routine in those places.

Suspicious-Half2593 on August 1st, 2025 at 13:22 UTC »

Whole new meaning to the phrase “Russian bear”