Russia's invasion of Ukraine is causing a struggle for both countries to enlist soldiers to fight on the battlefield.

Russia has been recruiting highly paid contract soldiers nationwide who receive money from local governments in addition to what they are paid by the state.

The mayor of Russia's capital Moscow announced on Tuesday that residents of the city who sign up to serve for more than one year will receive a one-time payment of 1.9 million rubles, or about 22,000 dollars.

The amount is 22-times more than the average salary of Russians in April announced by the Federal State Statistics Service.
The deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council, Dmitry Medvedev, said earlier this month that 190,000 new contract soldiers joined the military this year.

US think tank the Institute for the Study of War points out "such high financial incentives will continue to generate sufficient manpower to sustain Russia's current offensive tempo but are likely to impose high long-term costs on Russia's regional and federal budgets."

Meanwhile, Ukrainian media on Tuesday quoted a member of the country's parliament as saying 3,800 convicts have joined the Armed Forces.

Ukraine passed legislation in May this year allowing some convicts in prison to serve in the military.