The Russian Army has a suicide rate of 20.4 per 100,000 soldiers. By contrast, in the U.S. the rate is 11.1 -- in other words, nearly twice as many Russian soldiers kill themselves compared to Americans based on the Kremlin's own data, which is undoubtedly a gross understatement of the Russian total. The Herald Sun reports:

The Russian army loses more soldiers to suicide than any other major armed force in the world, a leaked government document shows. Four hundred and forty two soldiers died in non-combat situations in 2007, the Gazeta newspaper reported today, citing an internal defence ministry document. Two hundred and twenty four of the non-combat deaths were suicides among draftees. By comparison, 155 committed suicide in the US army in 2006, the paper reported. The Russian army has around 1.1 million soldiers compared to 1.4 million in the US army. The Russian army has a reputation for hazing. One human rights group estimated that half of the suicides in the army were due to brutal bullying by older soldiers. In one violent incident, Andrei Sychyov, 19, had to have his legs and genitals amputated after being beaten in 2005 by other soldiers in his barracks in the Ural mountains. Injuries are also common, the paper reported. In January alone, 1500 soldiers were seriously wounded in non-combat accidents. Twenty four thousand soldiers suffered serious wounds in 2007, the paper reported. Accidents listed in the document include road accidents, mishandling of firearms and arguments between soldiers.