CONTACTStaffCAREER OPPORTUNITIESADVERTISE WITH USPRIVACY POLICYPRIVACY PREFERENCESTERMS OF USELEGAL NOTICE
© 2024 Pride Publishing Inc.
All Rights reserved
All Rights reserved
By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Private Policy and Terms of Use.
The Russian military will no longer allow gay people, people with HIV or other sexually transmitted diseases, or drug addicts into its armed forces, an official newspaper reported Thursday. The new regulations, published in Thursday's edition of Rossiiskaya Gazeta, are to take effect July 1. Officials said they are part of an effort to tighten health requirements for conscripts, though they come at a time when the Russian military, underfunded and demoralized since the collapse of the Soviet Union, is struggling to fill its ranks. Each year thousands of young men--seeking to avoid the miserable conditions and vicious hazing that exist in the Russian armed forces as well as the war in Chechnya--forgo the twice-yearly call-up by acquiring deferments for education and medical reasons, paying bribes, or simply dodging the draft. Russian president Vladimir Putin has pledged to eliminate the compulsory draft and create a professional contract army, but the process has been beset by numerous delays and foot-dragging by the military's top brass.
Want more breaking equality news & trending entertainment stories?
Check out our NEW 24/7 streaming service: the Advocate Channel!
Download the Advocate Channel App for your mobile phone and your favorite streaming device!
From our Sponsors
Most Popular
Meet all 37 of the queer women in this season's WNBA
April 17 2024 11:24 AM
Here are the 15 gayest travel destinations in the world: report
March 26 2024 9:23 AM
21+ steamy photos of Scotland’s finest gay men in Elska Glasgow
February 01 2024 10:07 PM
More Than 50 of Our Favorite LGBTQ+ Moms
May 12 2024 11:44 AM
Conjoined twins Lori Schappell and trans man George Schappell dead at 62
April 27 2024 6:13 PM
Latest Stories
Kamala Harris rides wave of Democratic energy at kickoff event in Wisconsin
July 23 2024 3:36 PM
'Devastated:' A six-week abortion ban will go into effect in Iowa next week
July 23 2024 2:28 PM
Four hours, 44,000 Black women, and one Zoom call
July 23 2024 2:17 PM
Record 1.2 million people show out for Cologne’s Pride parade
July 23 2024 10:51 AM
Here's how far-right activist Leonard Leo helped fund Bud Light boycott
July 23 2024 10:27 AM
Elon Musk’s comments about his trans daughter prove why she doesn’t speak to him
July 23 2024 9:16 AM
Nancy Pelosi endorses Kamala Harris for president
July 22 2024 4:07 PM