Soldiers mobilized by Russia for the military operation in Ukraine stand at a ceremony before boarding a train at a railway station in Tyumen, Russia. AP.
Moscow: Russian soldiers who are taking part in the war on Ukraine will now be eligible to freeze their sperm for free and store it in cryobanks.
Russia’s state news agency Tass cited Igor Trunov, chairman of the Russian Union of Lawyers, saying that Russia’s health ministry responded to his appeal for budgetary assistance for soldiers who want to avail themselves of such services.
Trunov was quoted as saying that the ministry is “determined the possibility of financial support from the federal budget for free conservation and storage of germ cells (spermatozoa) for citizens mobilised to participate in the special military operation for 2022-2024”.
“The families of those called up for military service as part of the partial mobilization will receive free access to fertility treatment and the storage of biomaterial in a cryobank,” Trunov said.
According to Trunov, the Russian health ministry has responded to a request on the creation of a free cryobank of genetic material and amendments to the mandatory health insurance system to allocate a free fertility treatment quota for RF (Russian Federation) citizens taking part in the “special military operation”.
The TASS report also stated that any subsequent free use of conserved genetic material in assisted reproductive technology is governed by the law, provided it is indicated as a part of (the individual’s) mandatory health insurance package.
Russian soldiers killed
As per a US military chief, by November, over 10,000 Russian soldiers have been killed or wounded in the Ukraine war, with an equal number of casualties on the Ukrainian side. Subsequently, Russian President Vladimir Putin in September drafted up 300,000 additional troops.
When did sperm freezing demand start?
As per reports, an increase in demand for sperm freezing first emerged in October in a report in Russia’s Moskovskij Komsomolets newspaper. As per a BBC report, which cited the newspaper, after Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a partial mobilisation to support the war in Ukraine there had been a surge in sperm freezing.
As per the report while earlier people with chronic illness were the main customers, following the war, healthy men have started freezing their sperm.
Benefit of sperm freezing
The primary benefits of freezing sperm are to allow a man to preserve his fertility by using it at a later date or to give an infertile couple a chance to conceive.
Risk involved
There are no risks or side effects to collecting semen samples naturally. However, surgical extraction could be a little risky. Since 1953, sperm freezing has been successfully used to enable individuals conceive healthy babies. One of the major concern, however, is that not all sperm survive the freezing and thawing process.
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