Putin Has Once Again Increased The Authorized Strength Of The Russian Armed Forces

• 12.06.2026, 20:41

This is the fifth time this has happened since the war began in Ukraine.

Dictator Vladimir Putin has increased the authorized strength of the Russian Armed Forces for the fifth time since the start of the war, reports The Moscow Times. According to the signed decree, the total strength of the army has been set at 2,399,130 personnel, of whom 1.51 million are active-duty service members. The document, published on the official legal information portal, also states that the government has been instructed to allocate the necessary budgetary funds from the federal budget to the Ministry of Defense.

Prior to this, Putin had increased the authorized strength of the Russian Armed Forces in March to 2,391,770 personnel, of whom 1.5 million are active-duty service members. In September 2024, Putin increased the size of the armed forces to 2,389,130 personnel, including 1.5 million military personnel. Prior to that, in December 2023, the figure was 2,209,130 (1,320,000 military personnel), and in August 2022, six months after the war began, to 2,039,758 people, of whom 1,150,628 were military personnel.

Before the war, a 2017 decree was in effect in Russia, under which the authorized strength of the Russian Armed Forces was 1,902,758 people, including 1,013,628 military personnel.