In russia, Awards to the “svo-shniks” Have Spiraled out of Control

In russia, fake veterans and “heroes” of the so-called “special military operation” are proliferating en masse. The situation with awards in the aggressor state has completely spiraled out of control, as officially stated by the “civic chamber of the rf”.

Those who have not yet signed a contract with the ministry of defense of the rf have found a new way to make money and assert themselves – buying medals on online marketplaces.

Any russian civilian can easily buy copies of combat orders online. Sellers offer medals from the “wagner” group and the ministry of defense that are indistinguishable from the originals, while public organizations and even ordinary private individuals are churning out their own decorations that closely resemble state-issued ones.

As a result, humanitarian aid drivers walk around in camouflage, decked out in “hero stars” like Christmas trees. russians themselves admit that they pin this junk on themselves without any shame, because “they just want more medals”.

This avalanche of fake heroes has already spawned a slew of absurd situations in russia. For instance, fraudsters with their purchased trinkets are flocking to russian schools and universities, where they tell young people fabricated “stories of heroic deeds”, spouting utter nonsense.

Moreover, it is impossible to verify the classified award orders issued by the ministry of defense and the fsb, so people simply believe the word of russians with fake medals. The most brazen among them take advantage of this, casually making their way into government offices, posing for photos with lawmakers, and extorting money and benefits for themselves.

Attempts to regulate this in any way have crashed against the harsh russian reality. Efforts to ban non-state medals offended the “wagnerites”, the idea of creating a registry of awards at the ministry of justice frightened officials because the database would immediately be stolen or leaked online, and the fine for wearing fakes is currently only 1,000–1,500 rubles (the price of a pack of pelmeni).

So, while the kremlin tries to mold a cult of the “new elite”, russia is rapidly being flooded by a wave of fake “order bearers” who successfully rob and deceive their own naive population.