- Kremlin avoids more reservists to prevent mass emigration.
- Russia's military faces heavy losses despite a larger population
- Exact loss figures are classified.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has mandated an increase of 180,000 troops, raising Russia’s active military personnel to 1.5 million. This expansion will position Russia’s army as the second largest globally, following China’s. The decree, set to take effect on December 1, also outlines a total increase in the armed forces to 2.38 million.
Data from the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) reveals that Russia’s planned troop increase will surpass the number of active combat soldiers in the United States and India, making its army the second largest globally, behind China’s. Beijing currently has just over 2 million active-duty personnel, according to IISS.
This expansion, announced by President Vladimir Putin, is the third augmentation of Russian military forces since the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The increase comes as Russian troops make gradual advances in eastern Ukraine and attempt to drive Ukrainian forces out of Russia’s Kursk region.
In June, Putin estimated that nearly 700,000 troops were engaged in the conflict in Ukraine. Following a call-up of 300,000 reservists in response to Ukraine’s counteroffensive in late 2022, Russia has increasingly relied on recruiting volunteers enticed by higher wages.
Many observers have pointed out that the Kremlin has hesitated to mobilize additional reservists, wary of a repeat of 2022, when hundreds of thousands fled Russia to escape deployment. Despite having a population over three times larger than Ukraine’s, Russia’s military has faced significant battlefield losses similar to those of Kyiv’s forces.
The full extent of these losses remains classified and is kept as a state secret.
