An estimated 20 percent of Russia prisoner recruits are H.I.V. positive. To some, the front lines seemed less risky than prisons where they said they were denied effective treatments.
In Russian prisons, they said they were deprived of effective treatments for their H.I.V. On the battlefield in Ukraine, they were offered hope, with the promise of anti-viral medications if they agreed to fight.
It was a recruiting pitch that worked for many Russian prisoners.
About 20 percent of recruits in Russian prisoner units are H.I.V. positive, Ukrainian authorities estimate based on infection rates in captured soldiers. Serving on the front lines seemed less risky than staying in prison, the detainees said in interviews with The New York Times.
#Ukraine: The Ukrainian 59th Brigade destroyed a Russian T-72B tank with an ATGM strike in #Donetsk Oblast. pic.twitter.com/lcoxfKqAAq
— 🇺🇦 Ukraine Weapons Tracker (@UAWeapons) April 21, 2023
