Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered an additional 170,000 military troops to join the force, bringing the total number of servicemen to roughly 1.32 million.
The document detailing the order was published by the Kremlin's website and follows the singing on Friday. The document states that the military personnel quota of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation is now set at 1,320,000 troops. This is an increase from the previous number which was set at 1,150,628.
Putin Orders Increase in Number of Military Troops
Russian President Vladimir Putin signed an order on Friday for the increase of military troops by 170,000, bringing the total number to 1.32 million.
In a statement, the Russian Ministry of Defense (MoD) said that the increased quota was made in response to "the growing threats to our country associated with the special military operation and the ongoing expansion of NATO." Putin's military personnel also reportedly suffered heavy losses in the last few weeks as the invasion of Ukraine continued on its 22nd month.
Russia's MoD said that the increase will be implemented in stages at the expense of citizens who express a desire to perform military service under a contract. It added that there was no plan for a significant increase in the conscription of citizens for compulsory military service, as per Newsweek.
The Russian president's latest move could be seen as another political gamble as he is facing a re-election vote in March. Officials from Moscow have argued that Putin is expected to have no serious competitors in the upcoming election.
However, with the invasion of Ukraine growing increasingly unpopular among Russian citizens, it is possible that Putin's continued support for the war could become an obstacle to his re-election campaign.
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A professor at George Mason University Schar School of Policy and Government, Mark Katz said in an email that not all polling numbers have shown bad news for the Russian strongman. This includes a study that was published by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace on Tuesday. It found that 75% of Russian citizens "generally support the actions of the Russian armed forces."
The statement from the Russian MoD explaining the reason for the increase in military troops also noted that NATO "joined armed forces are being built up near Russia's borders." It added that additional air defense systems and strike weapons were being deployed. The ministry argued that the potential of NATO's tactical nuclear forces was being ramped up, according to Yahoo News.
Ongoing Russia-Ukraine War
Officials said that boosting the number of Russian troops was an appropriate response to the NATO bloc's aggressive activities. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu in December last year declared that the nation needed a total force of 1.5 million.
He argued that this was to guarantee the fulfillment of tasks to ensure Russia's security but did not say when the military would be able to reach such a size. Previously, the Kremlin also considered the size of its military as sufficient.
But amid continued conflict between Russia and Ukraine, both nations have been secretive about the actual number of military casualties that they have suffered. Moscow only confirmed just over 6,000 military casualties but the West has had much higher estimates.
The UK Defense Ministry in October tweeted in a regular update that Russia has "likely suffered 150,000 -190,000 permanent casualties." This number included troops that were killed and those that were permanently wounded, said the Associated Press.
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