Putin Expands Russian Military to 2.4 Million Amidst Ongoing Ukraine Conflict

Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed an executive order expanding the nation's total military personnel to 2,441,630, which raises the number of active-duty troops to 1.55 million. This expansion, the second such increase ordered since August, will add 15,500 active servicemen.

The move comes as Western intelligence agencies estimate that Russia is losing approximately 6,000 more soldiers monthly than it can recruit. Ukrainian estimates suggest Russia has lost over 1.5 million troops, with as many as 450,000 deaths, since the conflict began in 2022.

Russia's battlefield advances have slowed in the current year, largely attributed to widespread drone use which impedes large-scale troop movements. Putin has previously dismissed Ukrainian claims of further mobilization efforts as disinformation.

Earlier this month, Ukrainian intelligence chief Lieutenant General Oleh Ivashchenko claimed that troop losses, declining morale, and economic pressures could significantly impact Russia's ability to sustain the war by 2028. He stated that Russia recruits about 1,000 to 1,200 individuals daily, but daily casualty figures often exceed this, with approximately 60% of those killed in action. Projections suggest an additional 18 months of fighting could result in another 765,800 Russian casualties, including nearly 460,000 dead.

The Kremlin's announcement follows a recent parliamentary election where Putin's United Russia party secured a record supermajority in the Duma, winning 355 of the 450 seats. This result provides the party with a strong mandate for potential constitutional changes and is framed by the Kremlin as evidence of national unity around Putin's leadership.

Meanwhile, fighting continues along the front lines. On Tuesday, Russian strikes hit the National Academy of Sciences in Kyiv, an attack described by Ukrainian authorities as targeting "peaceful people who were simply at their workplaces... Ukrainian science, education and culture." A separate strike in the capital reportedly hit a medical facility. In Dnipro, strikes on a business center killed four and wounded at least 19, while fatalities were reported in a strike on a residential area in Kharkiv. Other regions, including Zhytomyr, Sumy, Rivne, and Odesa, also sustained damage from Russian attacks. In Zaporizhzhia, 30 civilians were wounded, three seriously. A Russian jet-powered drone also struck a Ukrainian village near the Polish border, damaging a border checkpoint.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has reiterated calls for increased military support from Western allies, particularly for advanced interceptor systems. Ukrainian Prime Minister Sergiy Koretsky indicated that the nation will postpone certain spending commitments, including reconstruction work, due to delays in receiving foreign aid. With winter approaching, and recalling last year's attacks on energy infrastructure, Koretsky suggested that vulnerable individuals might consider relocating from cities to alleviate pressure on emergency services.