Russia's army buildup

Where things stand

Vladimir Putin has signed a decree raising the authorised strength of Russia's armed forces to 2,426,130 personnel, with the number of service members going up from 1,510,000 to 1,535,000 as of 1 August. Meduza describes this as the sixth such expansion since the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, placing today's step in a pattern of steady, incremental increases to the army's paper size rather than a single dramatic mobilisation. The decree sets authorised ceilings, and the reporting available so far does not establish how far actual staffing follows them. Alongside the manpower decree, TASS reports that Putin signed a separate order adding the Sirius federal territory to the list of border areas where foreigners are barred from owning land. An investigation by Novaya Gazeta Europe, cited by Meduza, concludes that at least 400,000 Russian troops have already returned from the front to civilian life, a figure that sits against the expanding official headcount and suggests continued turnover in the ranks. That estimate comes from the outlet's own research and has not been independently confirmed here.

Russia's armed forces operate under an authorised strength set by presidential decree, which fixes both the total number of positions (including civilian staff) and the separate figure for uniformed service members. Since the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, that ceiling has been raised repeatedly; Meduza counts the latest decree as the sixth such increase. Raising the authorised figure does not by itself add soldiers, but it sets the legal room for recruitment and contract service. Separately, Russian law restricts foreign ownership of land in designated border areas, and the list of those areas is periodically extended by decree.