President of Russia Vladimir Putin signed a decree that comes into force on August 1. The document provides for an increase in the authorized strength of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation by 27,000 military personnel. The official reason for the expansion is cited as the creation of new military construction units.
New figures and background
As a result of the signed decree, the total number of personnel in the Russian army will reach 2,426,000. At the same time, the number of military personnel directly will increase by 25,000 units — to 1,535,000 people. This is not the first such decision in the recent period: a preliminary expansion of the Russian Armed Forces was already carried out in March and June 2026.
Position of Russian authorities
The head of the State Duma Defense Committee, Andrey Kartapolov, previously stated that Russia does not need to announce a new mobilization, as there are "enough volunteers" to continue hostilities against Ukraine. However, the legislative base continues to change in the direction of expanding opportunities to attract citizens to service.
On July 22, the State Duma adopted a draft law allowing citizens with unexpired criminal records to sign contracts with the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation even during periods when mobilization is formally in effect. This decision could significantly expand the army's personnel reserve.
Kyiv's reaction
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy commented on Moscow's actions. According to him, Putin is preparing to "simply take new Russians to war," masking this process under other official formulations. Critics point out that expanding the staff is just one of the tools for preparing for an escalation of the conflict.
