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By David Averre
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Vladimir Putin has a tantalizing new offer for Russia’s soldiers: swap the rifle for a government ID card and let the war do the talking on your résumé.
Today’s fighters are being groomed to become tomorrow’s lawmakers, governors and civil servants. This is no accident, and no mere thank-you for their service; Putin is building a warrior class whose prestige, prospects and place in the Russian establishment derive from participation in his war in Ukraine.
Call it the next deep state—a generation of officials who owe their careers to the special military operation, and whose loyalties will outlast it in the service of the Kremlin.
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Good luck getting in, though.
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A Hero’s Journey?
On Monday, the Kremlin opened applications for the third intake of its extremely popular "Time of Heroes" program, which seeks to fast-track military veterans into government and civilian management jobs.
Previous intakes required a university degree. Not any more. Soldiers who finished high school can now compete for three years of training, including 18 months at Russia’s Presidential Academy, and graduate with state-recognized diplomas. Military achievements count toward selection, meaning combat credentials can open doors that a lack of academic ones once kept shut. More than 5,000 applied within 24 hours, according to Sergei Kiriyenko, Putin’s first deputy chief of staff.
Meanwhile, Moscow is bending the rules of government in favor of Russia’s warfighters. On October 28, 341 lawmakers proposed legislation that would count military service as experience in local government, helping veterans qualify sooner for higher-ranking municipal jobs, salary bonuses and additional paid leave.
The proposal follows the State Duma elections in September, in which candidates identified as war veterans won more than 10 percent of parliamentary seats, according to election chief Ella Pamfilova. Forty-one belonged to Putin’s United Russia party, and 19 of them were participants in earlier rounds of the Time of Heroes program, its organizers say. Other notable program alumni include presidential envoy Artem Zhoga—a former commander of the Russian-backed Sparta militia and senior official of the self-proclaimed, Russian-backed Donetsk People's Republic—and Tambov Governor Yevgeny Pervyshov.
Pipe Dreams
Such prestige and opportunity aren't just rewards for those returning from Ukraine. They’re an advertisement for those considering whether to go in the first place.
Russia already offers signing bonuses worth millions of rubles and monthly war-zone pay starting around 210,000 rubles, roughly $2,500. In the Khanty-Mansi region, the combined one-time signing package currently runs to 4.1 million rubles, or about $50,000.
Throw in the prospect of a comfortable career in government or a state-backed company, and military service acquires another selling point for young Russians on the fence about whether to risk it all.
For the Kremlin, every soldier promoted into public life helps sell the war to the Russian public as a source of honor and upward mobility. Every veteran in a government office further embeds war into Russia's institutions, and each appointment reminds the beneficiary who handed them the keys.
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Time of Heroes is one of the most conspicuous vehicles for this makeover. But competition is fierce, to say the least. More than 44,000 applied for its first class; just 83 were selected, and 82 graduated. Another 21,644 applied in the second round, which admitted 85 people, but 37 of those were strong applicants carried over from the first intake. Applications for the latest intake close January 25, 2027, but the number of places has not been announced.
Of the lucky few who are accepted and manage to graduate, fewer still can expect to march straight to the top. Many of the military veterans who won a seat in the State Duma in September were already political insiders who had never actually fought on the front lines. For them, the war is less a key part of their life stories than a way to pad a political résumé.
“This is all a performance—it's political and administrative work by the Kremlin's political bloc,” Farida Rustamova, Russian political journalist and founder of the independent outlet Vlast, told Newsweek. “Most of them will actually be professional officials, they just have that status. That’s why they’ll be easy to control.” Real soldiers, she argued, will not simply be handed executive power without the necessary qualifications.
Still, for those who do manage to make the cut, the deal can still be pretty sweet. A good salary, a nice title, and a ready-made career are there for the taking—just so long as they remember what got them through the door, and whose tune they’re expected to dance to.
Wars end, but bureaucracies endure.
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