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Berlin Report Finds 20-Fold HIV Increase in Russian Troops, Moscow Denies Claims

Combat-zone medical failures alongside Kremlin stigma policies have fueled the unprecedented HIV surge in troops.

Certains soldats «vivent chaque jour comme si c’était le dernier», selon un institut de recherche indépendant.

Overview

  • A Berlin-based Carnegie Politika study shows HIV cases in Russian forces multiplied twentyfold by the end of 2023 compared with pre-war levels.
  • Researchers link the rise to battlefield conditions, including unprotected sex, drug use, contaminated transfusions and syringe reuse in field hospitals.
  • Recent Kremlin measures—banning the Elton John AIDS Foundation, outlawing sex education and labeling LGBTQ+ groups as extremist—have exacerbated stigma and blocked prevention.
  • Russia’s Health Ministry has publicly rejected the report’s data as propaganda, intensifying a dispute over military health transparency.
  • The surge reflects a wider crisis that places Russia among the top five countries globally for new HIV infections since 2022, raising long-term demographic and economic concerns.