Following several recent reports of HIV infections among Russian soldiers:
New HIV diagnoses rose by at least 13 × by end of 2022, compared to pre‑war levels — and by early 2023 data showed a 40 × spike at peak, with the annual rate still around 20 × higher by end‑2023.
By mid‑2025 reporting, analysts characterize this as roughly a 2,000 % increase, i.e. a 20-fold rise since February 2022.
Multiple risk factors are converging to produce this health crisis:
- Frontline medical failures: wartime shortages have led to the reuse of syringes, unsafe blood transfusions, and interrupted antiretroviral therapy (ART), raising both transmission and drug‑resistance risk
- High‑risk behaviors: soldiers cited an ethos of living “as if today is their last,” engaging in unprotected sex — sometimes with sex workers or each other, and drug injection with shared needles
- Prisoner conscripts: a sizable fraction of new recruits are drawn from penal colonies, where HIV prevalence reportedly reaches about 10 %. Some sources indicate about 20 % of prison booster recruits may be HIV‑positive
The explosion of HIV infections among Russian soldiers since the war began signals more than a battlefield health crisis — it reflects structural collapse in medical standards, societal stigma, and an avoidance of harm‑reduction measures.
Roughly 30,000 Russians die from HIV infections annually and it is estimated, according to UNAIDS, around 1.1 million people are currently living with HIV in Russia.
As per Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center: Russia continues to record 50,000–100,000 new cases of HIV every year.
Sources:
Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center: Russia’s War Against Ukraine Has Seen an Explosion in HIV Rates
The Kyiv Independent: HIV rates among Russian soldiers surge 2,000% since start of full-scale invasion of Ukraine
reddit: To Access Meds, Russian Prisoners With HIV Join War Against Ukraine (April 2023)
t-online: Diese Krankheit breitet sich in russischen Truppen rasant aus
Georgetown Journal of International Affairs: The Silenced Epidemic: Why Does Russia Fail to Address HIV?