Russian Ministry of Defense (MoD) co-opting the Wagner brand and its predatory recruitment tactics. The text is a disjointed, manipulative, and deeply cynical piece of state-backed propaganda designed to lure the most desperate dregs of Russian society into a meat grinder.
The Grotesque “Travel Agency” Euphemism
The advertisement opens with the most Orwellian euphemism imaginable: the “MO travel agency.” This framing attempts to sanitize industrialized slaughter as a “fascinating and captivating journey.” The destinations listed—Zaporozhye, Kharkov, Odessa—are not “unexplored places”; they are active, bloody frontlines in a sovereign country. This language is a psychological operation targeting individuals with a complete detachment from reality, promising “adventure” where there is only trench warfare, artillery barrages, and a high probability of a violent, anonymous death.
The promise of a “free hotel” and “tavern” is a pathetic attempt to rebrand a squalid barracks and a field mess. The entire “tour” concept is a lie designed to conceal a simple, brutal contract: the recruit’s life in exchange for cash.
Predatory Economics
A Contract for the Damned
The core of the ad is not patriotism; it is a predatory financial instrument. The message targets the impoverished, the indebted, and the desperate. An “Awesome cashback of 2.5 million rubles” and a “SIGNING BONUS” of the same amount are life-changing sums for the ad’s target demographic.
The most sinister promise is the “DEBT WRITE-OFF FOR YOU AND YOUR FAMILY UP TO 10,000,000 MILLION RUBLES.” The typo (10 million million) reveals the sloppiness and fantasy of the promise. The state, having failed to provide economic security, now leverages the financial ruin of its citizens. It offers a devil’s bargain: sign your life over to the MoD, and your family might escape crushing debt. The caveat that “Alimony debts are not subject to write-off” is a specific, cruel detail.
The “salary” of 240,000-260,000 rubles per month, plus “8,000 RUB/COMBAT DAY” and “50,000 RUB FOR EACH KILOMETER OF ADVANCE,” are fantasy figures. The last promise is particularly absurd in a war defined by static lines and attritional combat. These are not real, achievable incentives; they are lottery numbers dangled in front of men who have nothing left to lose.
Solicitation for War Crimes
The ad quickly pivots from “tourism” to sociopathy. The “highlight of the program” is a checklist for war criminals:
“bang-bang on the Maidan”: A direct call to suppress civilian political will, referencing Ukraine’s 2014 revolution.
“Zelenina on the spit”: A naked, public threat to torture and execute Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, using a dehumanizing pun on his name (“zelenina” means “greens”).
“charcoal-grilled pork ribs”: A grotesque and celebratory reference to burning human bodies.
“exotic cuisine (a variety of mercenaries)”: A call to kill foreign volunteers, framing them as subhuman “cuisine.”
This is not a recruitment ad for a professional army. It is a filter. The language is designed to attract and select for individuals with a preexisting capacity for extreme violence and cruelty. It openly advertises war crimes as a job perk.
The “Umbrella” of Desperation
The most telling section reveals the utter bankruptcy of the Russian military’s manpower. The ad expands its net to “MEN PRIVATES – UP TO 65 YEARS OLD.” A state hiring 65-year-olds for “assault troops” is not a global power; it is a failing regime scraping the bottom of the barrel.
The ad for “Guys from ‘Umbrella'” confirms this. “Umbrella” is a known Wagner-era codename for recruits with serious infectious diseases. The state is now openly recruiting men “With HIV, hepatitis C.” These men are seen as having no future, making them the perfect disposable soldiers. They are offered a final paycheck and a state-sanctioned outlet for violence before their disease or a Ukrainian drone claims them.
A Bureaucratic Shell Game
The promises of “social guarantees,” “official registration,” and “Combat veteran status” are the final deception. The ad simultaneously offers “Official registration and employment” while also offering to “create a birch bark document (relationship, relationships, etc.).” “We make relationships” is a clear admission of fraud—creating fake marriage certificates so a recruit’s benefits can be passed to a designated person.
The state is openly offering to defraud itself. This contradiction exposes the entire system as a lie. A recruit’s “official” status is meaningless when the recruiter offers to forge documents. The “Life insurance” (12 million rubles for death) is a hollow promise to families who will likely never receive a body, only a “Missing in Action” status that prevents any payout. The “veteran status” is a worthless honorific for a man whose corpse is decomposing in a field in Zaporozhye.
The ad is a portrait of a hollowed-out military cannibalizing its own population. It sells a fantasy of adventure and wealth to the sick, the old, and the indebted, demanding only their bodies and their souls in return.
We See What Others Cannot
