Putin signs fourth decree this year expanding Russia's armed forces to 2.4 million as losses OUTPACE recruitment

From the Newshound archive · first published 29 September 2026.

Vladimir Putin has signed an executive order setting Russia's total authorised military strength at 2,441,630, of whom 1,550,500 would serve on active duty — the fourth expansion of this kind he has decreed in 2026 alone. Western intelligence agencies warn that Russian battlefield deaths and injuries are outpacing recruitment by 6,000 troops per month, while Ukraine puts total Russian casualties since 2022 at over 1.5 million. The decree comes after elections that Putin's United Russia party used to demonstrate public backing for the war. Ukraine's spy chief Lieutenant General Oleh Ivashchenko has cautioned that Russia's war-making capacity could be critically weakened by 2028.

The cumulative personnel increase since March has reached 47,860 soldiers, yet independent analysts report that volunteer sign-up rates are falling even as financial incentives remain generous.

Russia's rate of territorial advance has slowed sharply this year, with the proliferation of drones rendering large-scale troop movements nearly untenable; Ukrainian forces have reportedly achieved localised breakthroughs along parts of the front line.