The State Duma adopted two more laws on the service of prisoners in the army

On March 19, the State Duma adopted in the second and third readings bills on exemption from criminal liability for concluding a contract with the Ministry of Defense of Russia. They make it easier for the state to complete the service of prisoners in the army.

According to the documents, in the event of a contract with the Ministry of Defense, the criminal cases of the suspects will be suspended, and those sentenced to a real term will be replaced with conditional sentences. Later, they can be released from responsibility and have the status of a defendant removed from them.

The laws will not apply to those who have committed crimes under a number of articles of the Criminal Code, including crimes against the sexual integrity of minors, terrorism, espionage, and treason.

Earlier, the State Duma had already adopted the same law for those convicted of crimes committed before June 24, 2023. The new documents also apply to those who committed a crime or were convicted even after this date.

• The mass service of prisoners in the Russian army began after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. At first, the prisoners served in PMC “Wagner”, later they began to be transferred to other units. In January 2024, it became known that prisoners who went to war stopped receiving pardons from President Putin.
• According to estimates by the editors of “Mediazona” and the Russian Service of the BBC, which keep a list of the names of those who died in the war in Ukraine, about 18 percent of the Russian soldiers who died at the front were prisoners. This is the largest category among the dead who are known to have entered the army.