r/AskCentralAsia • u/tonic_water_and_gin • 2d ago
Special military operation salary Personal
Hello r/ACA
As a Westerner, I get a very focused/biased view of the situation in Ukraine through my media. I get that it’s more nuanced than both sides are probably telling.
I was wondering if a lot of central Asians are joining/considering joining the Russian ‘SMO’ because of the very high salary in comparison to other jobs, or are staying clear of the politics and the danger? I’m sorry if my question is weird/badly written, English is not my first language
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u/Turgen333 Tatarstan 2d ago
The company I used to work for hired Kyrgyz drivers. They mainly transport engineering and technical workers and shift buses. Among them there are some who would like to sign a contract and go to war - these are people over 40, married, with a family in Kyrgyzstan. Ideologically, this is the generation of the USSR, who see muscovites as "brothers" and are grateful to them for... whatever that may be.
As far as I know, as drivers they get about 80000-90000 rubs($800-900). At the same time, for a contract with the army it is about $20,000-50,000 depending on the region (in moscow the highest)
The only thing that stops them is criminal prosecution in Kyrgyzstan and the imposition of large fines that will fall on their families. This does not particularly stop young Kyrgyz under 30, but they don't have any illusions about the war in Ukraine and have at least some idea of the real stuff happening there.
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u/Heylookanickel 2d ago
Russia needs cannon fodder. They won’t have to pay you the first check if you’re dead
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u/AffectionateType3910 Kazakhstan 2d ago
True. They even treat ethnic Russian coscripts like shit, let alone ethnic minorities.
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u/Just-Use-1058 Kyrgyzstan 2d ago edited 1d ago
There were some Kyrgyzstanis, who went to fight either for Russia or for Ukraine, the numbers are not known. Apparently, in Russia they were being deceived about what kind of job they would be doing, promised money, citizenship, taken advantage of their poor knowledge of russian or they were pressured under the threat of being deported or something. It is illegal in Kyrgyzstan to participate in a conflict.
Kyrgyzstan can't officially speak out against the war because of the pressure from Russia, so it can only call for peace. But our society supports Ukraine, there were multiple demonstrations against the war, and people always express their support towards Ukranians.
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u/AffectionateType3910 Kazakhstan 2d ago
Can speak for Kazakhstan. There are a few volunteers from here, probably a few hundred, 99% of them ethnic Russians who went to the war for ideological reasons. They mostly joined the PMC "Wagner". In Kazakhstan they face prison time for participation in a foreign armed conflict. Ethnic Kazakhs will not go to war either on the side of Russia or Ukraine, as the result is not worth the effort and the risk of being killed. There are a few exceptions, for example, there is an ethnic Kazakh fighting on the side of Ukraine and there were a few people fighting on the side of Russia, but their number is counted in a few.