Putin Expands Russia’s Armed Forces and Issues the Largest Military Draft in Over a Decade

As tensions with Ukraine and NATO escalate, Putin has called up 160,000 conscripts for Russia’s largest military drill since 2011.

The country’s greatest military conscription since 2011 has seen Russian President Vladimir Putin order the conscription of 160,000 men between the ages of 18 and 30. Despite the ongoing crisis in Ukraine and heightened military tensions with NATO, the action is part of Russia’s ongoing military buildup. 

In line with Putin’s objective of boosting Russia’s total military force to over 2.39 million soldiers, the most recent spring draft, which takes place from April to July, is 10,000 more than the 2024 intake. As part of this, there will be 1.5 million active duty members, a 180,000 increase over the course of three years. 

There will be no deployment of the new conscripts to Ukraine, said Vice Admiral Vladimir Tsimlyansky. Some have reportedly been killed in battle, though, especially in areas near Russia’s border. Contrary to official claims, conscripts were also sent to Ukraine in the early months of the full-scale conflict. 

In addition to requiring conscription, Moscow has reportedly hired contract soldiers and recruited thousands of troops from North Korea as part of its stepped-up recruitment campaign. Since last year, the draft pool has been greatly increased by raising the conscription age restriction from 27 to 30. 

Call-up notices are being delivered by mail and through Gosuslugi, the Russian state services website, to ensure widespread and organized enlistment. 

Fighting in Ukraine continues to be fierce despite U.S. efforts to mediate a ceasefire. A Russian attack on a power plant in Kherson, a city in the south, on Tuesday knocked out electricity for 45,000 residents. In the eastern Donetsk region, Moscow asserted that it had taken control of the settlement of Rozlyiv. 

Many people believe that Russia’s high battlefield losses are the reason for its military buildup. Over 100,000 Russian servicemen have been killed in Ukraine, according to independent sources from the BBC and the Russian investigative firm Mediazona; estimates put the actual death toll as high as twice that. 

Russia’s military is expanding in tandem with NATO’s ongoing expansion, which Moscow considers a direct security threat. Sweden and Finland joined the alliance after Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022; Finland and Russia now share a 1,343-kilometer (834-mile) border. 

Finland declared on Tuesday that it would leave the Ottawa Convention, which prohibits anti-personnel mines, in reaction to alleged Russian aggression. The nation has joined Poland and the Baltic nations in resuming the defensive use of such weapons. The decision was based on military advice, and Finland was not in immediate danger, Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo assured the populace. 

Furthermore, in line with a regional trend of military fortification, Helsinki has committed to raising defense spending to 3% of its GDP, up from 2.4% the previous year. 

Since the invasion of Ukraine, Putin has tripled Russia’s military, attributing the most recent rise to “growing threats” posed by NATO’s expansion and the protracted war in Ukraine. Increasing soldier numbers is crucial for national security, according to Moscow’s defense ministry.