Moscow: In a significant escalation of military efforts, Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree ordering a substantial increase in the country’s military personnel by 180,000, bringing the total to 1.5 million active servicemen.
The expansion, set to take effect on December 1, will make Russia’s army the second-largest in the world, behind only China.
The decree, published on the government’s official website, states that the total size of Russia’s armed forces will grow to 2.38 million people. According to the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), this will place Russia ahead of both the United States and India in terms of active military personnel. China’s armed forces, the largest globally, currently stand at just over 2 million.
This move marks the third increase in troop numbers since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Russian forces continue to engage in heavy fighting in eastern Ukraine while fending off Ukrainian counterattacks in regions such as Kursk. In June 2024, Putin revealed that nearly 700,000 Russian troops were involved in the war effort.
Facing significant battlefield losses, both Russia and Ukraine have sustained high casualties in the ongoing conflict. Despite Russia’s larger population, the Kremlin has faced challenges in replenishing its forces, often turning to volunteer soldiers incentivized by high wages. In 2022, Putin called up 300,000 reservists to support the war effort, sparking mass emigration as many sought to avoid conscription.
Observers note that while the Kremlin remains cautious about another large-scale mobilization of reservists, the continued troop increases reflect Moscow’s determination to push forward in the prolonged conflict. With the latest decree, Putin signals that the war in Ukraine remains far from over, and Russia is prepared to significantly bolster its military ranks to achieve its objectives.
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