Putin signs decree to increase size of army by over 100,000

Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree increasing the size of the Russian armed forces from 1.9 million to 2.04 million. This increase includes a 137,000 person increase to the number of combat personnel, representing a boost of some 10% in troop numbers.

The decree, which will come into force on 1st January 2023, calls to “set the full-time strength of the armed forces of the Russian Federation at 2,039,758 units, including 1,150,628 combat personnel”.

The last time Vladimir Putin signed such a decree was in November 2017, which set the number of combat personnel at 1,013,628 units, out of a total armed forces headcount of 1,902,758.

The decree comes as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has stalled along much of the frontline, with Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu claiming that they have deliberately slowed down their offensive to save Ukrainian civilian lives. A recruitment drive is taking place across the country, with people being offered huge cash incentives to enlist. The level of enthusiasm for voluntary combat military service is, however, "very limited", according to a statement from the UK Ministry of Defence released two weeks prior to the decree.

While Russia has not updated its official military losses since the first weeks of the war, when it said 1,351 of its soldiers had been killed, western estimates suggest the real figure could be far higher. As of 25th August, the Ukrainian Defence Ministry says Russia has lost almost 46,000 troops, while some western estimates say that as many as 70-80,000 Russian soldiers have been killed, wounded or deserted since the start of its full-scale invasion on 24th February 2022.

source: commonspace.eu with Reuters, RIA Novosti, UAWire, and BBC
photo: Getty Images

Related articles

Editor's choice
News
Borrell tells the European Parliament that the situation in Afghanistan was critical, but the EU will remain engaged

Borrell tells the European Parliament that the situation in Afghanistan was critical, but the EU will remain engaged

Borrell underlined that the European Union will make every effort to support the peace process and to remain a committed partner to the Afghan people. "Of course, we will have to take into account the evolving situation, but disengagement is not an option.  We are clear on that: there is no alternative to a negotiated political settlement, through inclusive peace talks.
Editor's choice
News
Israeli hostages and Palestinian detainees released as Trump’s Gaza plan is endorsed in Egypt summit

Israeli hostages and Palestinian detainees released as Trump’s Gaza plan is endorsed in Egypt summit

Hamas freed the last living Israeli hostages from Gaza on Monday 13 October under a ceasefire deal and Israel sent home busloads of Palestinian detainees, as U.S. President Donald Trump declared the end of the two-year long war in the Middle East. Hours later, Trump convened Muslim and European leaders in Egypt to discuss the future of the Gaza Strip and the possibility of a wider regional peace, even as Hamas and Israel, both absent from the gathering, are yet to agree on the next steps. The Israeli military said it had received all 20 hostages confirmed to be alive, after their transfer form Gaza by the Red Cross. The announcement prompted cheering, hugging and weeping among thousands waiting at "Hostage Square" in Tel Aviv. In Gaza, thousands of relatives, many weeping with joy, gathered at a hospital where buses brought home some of the nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and detainees to be freed by Israel as part of the accord. "The skies are calm, the guns are silent, the sirens are still and the sun rises on a Holy Land that is finally at peace," Trump told the Knesset, Israel's parliament, saying a "long nightmare" for both Israelis and Palestinians was over.

Popular

Editor's choice
News
Israeli hostages and Palestinian detainees released as Trump’s Gaza plan is endorsed in Egypt summit

Israeli hostages and Palestinian detainees released as Trump’s Gaza plan is endorsed in Egypt summit

Hamas freed the last living Israeli hostages from Gaza on Monday 13 October under a ceasefire deal and Israel sent home busloads of Palestinian detainees, as U.S. President Donald Trump declared the end of the two-year long war in the Middle East. Hours later, Trump convened Muslim and European leaders in Egypt to discuss the future of the Gaza Strip and the possibility of a wider regional peace, even as Hamas and Israel, both absent from the gathering, are yet to agree on the next steps. The Israeli military said it had received all 20 hostages confirmed to be alive, after their transfer form Gaza by the Red Cross. The announcement prompted cheering, hugging and weeping among thousands waiting at "Hostage Square" in Tel Aviv. In Gaza, thousands of relatives, many weeping with joy, gathered at a hospital where buses brought home some of the nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and detainees to be freed by Israel as part of the accord. "The skies are calm, the guns are silent, the sirens are still and the sun rises on a Holy Land that is finally at peace," Trump told the Knesset, Israel's parliament, saying a "long nightmare" for both Israelis and Palestinians was over.