In the Russian Federation, the poorest regions spent the most on monuments to those killed in the war against Ukraine

Since 2023, Russian regions have spent more than 150 million rubles on memorials to soldiers killed in the war against Ukraine, The Moscow Times estimated. The leader was the Transbaikal region, which spent more than 42 million rubles.

In second place was the Republic of Tyva (over 23 million rubles), in third place – the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous District (over 21 million rubles).

Tyva repeatedly topped the rating of the poorest regions of Russia, and Transbaikalia was among the top ten.

At the beginning of September, at least 1,212 people were known to have died in the Trans-Baikal region, 716 in Tiva and 252 in the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous District (YANAO), according to estimates by Mediazona and the Russian BBC service. The Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug became one of the leaders in spending on the expansion of cemeteries during the war, spending more than 15 million rubles, according to a study by The Moscow Times.

In the Trans-Baikal region, memorial complexes were built in the village of Aginske (over 11 million rubles), in the city of Borzya (over 9 million), in the village of Nerchynsky Zavod (over 10 million) and in the village of Mogoitui (over 11 million). Militants of the “Wagner” PMK group were repeatedly buried in the city of Borzya, the publication notes.

In Kyzyl (the capital of Tyva), 23 million were spent on the memorial complex “Heroes Park – participants of the SVO (“special military operation” – the official Russian designation of the war against Ukraine – ed.). In YANAO, more than 14 million went to the memorial to those who died during the “SVO” in the village of Muzhi. The monument was not opened on time, as the village is located far from highways and there are no roads in it.

The start of the construction of memorials to the participants of the war against Ukraine was given by Vladimir Putin, who in 2023 instructed the heads of regions to “take additional measures aimed at perpetuating the memory of the participants of the “special military operation”. After that, monuments and memorials began to be opened in Russia, but some were soon dismantled. For example, in Ufa, the “Homecoming Alley” dedicated to the Russian military was demolished. A business center will be built in its place.