On Friday, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered that he will increase the country’s military troops by almost 170,000, bringing the armed forces to 1.32 million.
The Kremlin originally considered the size of its military as sufficient when invading Ukraine in February 2022, but underestimated the country’s resistance.
“The increase in the full-time strength of the armed forces is due to the growing threats to our country associated with the special military operation and the ongoing expansion of NATO,” the Russian Ministry of Defence said in a statement.
The Russian military has confirmed just over 6,000 military casualties, but the U.K. defense ministry estimates are higher. Russia had “likely suffered 150,000 to 190,000 permanent casualties,” according to the ministry.
This is the second expansion of the Russian army since 2018. In August 2022, Putin ordered 137,000 troops, putting the military’s numbers around 2 million personnel and about 1.15 million troops.
Russia had made various efforts to increase its army, including drafting conscripts, mobilizing reservists, forming volunteer battalions, and running campaigns to entice more men to enlist.
Putin has just issued a decree to raise the size of Russia’s armed forces by another 170k personnel.
It brings the total strength of Russia’s military to (on paper) 2.2 million, up 10% from before the invasion. https://t.co/SYCN9zIoJc
— Tim Mak (@timkmak) December 2, 2023
All Russian men aged 18 to 27 must serve one year in the military; the age requirement will be raised up to 30 on January 1, 2024. However, many avoid the draft for health reasons or deferments granted to university students.
Russia recently launched a campaign to entice more men to enlist by releasing advertisements promising cash bonuses, recruiters making cold calls to eligible men, and enlistment offices working with universities and social service agencies to lure students and the unemployed.
Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, now deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council, reported on Friday that over 452,000 men were recruited to the military from January 1 to December 1, 2023.
While Putin stated there was no need to round up more recruits, his mobilization decree is open-ended, allowing the military to call up additional reservists when needed. It also banned volunteer soldiers from ending their contracts.
