The measure will take effect from next year and will increase the number of troops to 1,150,628

Putin signs decree to increase Russia's regular troop strength

Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on Thursday to increase the number of servicemen serving in the Russian army by 137,000, according to a document published on Russia's legal information portal. According to the resolution, the number of Russian troops will rise to 1,150,628.

The decree contains a direct order to the government to allocate the necessary budget, but does not specify how the conscription is to be carried out. Russia has a one-year compulsory military service for all men between the ages of 18 and 27.

Putin's decision comes a day after the invasion of Ukraine entered its sixth month, but the decree will come into force on 1 January 2023.

The Russian army will thus consolidate its fifth position in the ranking of the world's largest armed forces, behind only China, India, the United States and North Korea.

Russia acknowledged the deaths of more than 1,300 soldiers in Ukraine at the beginning of the invasion, but soon stopped providing casualty figures. According to Western intelligence and UN figures, the death toll among Putin's forces ranges from 10,000 to 15,000.

The Kremlin has tried to mitigate these casualties in Ukraine by recruiting Chechen and Syrian volunteers, or even mercenaries from the Wagner group. Moscow has even reportedly offered amnesty to some prisoners in exchange for joining military service.

In November 2017, Putin set the number of military personnel at 1,013,628 as part of the first such measure in almost a decade. After the new increase in the number of regular soldiers, the armed forces, which also includes civilian personnel, will exceed 2 million.

Prior to its 'special military operation' in Ukraine, the Russian army had 900,000 soldiers in its ranks and 2 million people in reserve.