Putin expands Russia's military for the third time this year
Photo: Russian President Vladimir Putin (Getty Images)
Russian leader Vladimir Putin has once again expanded the authorized strength of Russia's armed forces by signing a new decree, according to TASS.
Putin expands Russia's military again
Putin signs decree to expand Russian military by 27,000 troops starting August 1.
The official reason given for the increase is the creation of military construction units.
As a result, the total authorized strength of Russia's armed forces will rise to 2,426,000 personnel.
The number of active military personnel will increase by 25,000, bringing the total to 1,535,000 troops.
The previous expansions of Russia's armed forces took place in March and June 2026.
Earlier, Russian officials claimed there was no need to announce a new mobilization because the country has enough "volunteers" to continue the war against Ukraine. The statement was made by Andrey Kartapolov, head of the Russian State Duma's Defense Committee.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said that Putin is preparing to send more Russians to war. According to Zelenskyy, the Kremlin is disguising these plans under different wording and signals while preparing for further recruitment.
On July 22, Russia's State Duma also passed a bill allowing citizens with unexpunged criminal records to sign contracts with the Russian Ministry of Defense during officially declared periods of mobilization.
