OREANDA-NEWS. Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday, August 31, signed decrees on a one-time payment of $204 (15 thousand rubles) to the security forces. These funds will be received by the military, as well as employees of the Investigative Committee, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Rosgvardiya, the penal enforcement system and customs officers. In the case of the military, money is promised not only to contract employees, but also to cadets of military universities.

Earlier, it was decided to pay lump sums of $136 (10 thousand rubles) to Russian pensioners. It is estimated that about $681,9 million (half a trillion rubles) from the federal budget will be required for payments to security forces and pensioners.

Putin announced these measures less than a month before the elections to the State Duma of the Russian Federation. The Communists called it bribing voters in order to convince them to vote for the ruling United Russia party. They tried to challenge these decisions, but the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation rejected their claims.

According to polls, United Russia is noticeably losing popularity after the adoption of a controversial pension reform in 2018. The AFP news agency notes that one-time payments to security forces and pensioners are being made against the background of attempts by the Russian authorities to contain the rapid growth of inflation, which, according to the Central Bank of the Russian Federation, reached 6.5 percent.