Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree increasing the authorised strength of the Russian Armed Forces to 2,426,000 personnel. The number of military personnel within this strength is rising from 1,510,000 to 1,535,000. The changes are linked to the creation of military engineering units; the decree will come into force on 1 August.<\/p>\n
Briefly about the main points<\/strong><\/p>\n The new authorised strength sets the total number of personnel in the Russian Armed Forces at 2,426,000. Of these, 1,535,000 are military personnel. Compared with the previous figure, their number has increased by 25,000.<\/p>\n Between the decrees issued in June and July, the total authorised strength increased by 27,000 posts. Consequently, a further 2,000 additional posts are allocated to non-military personnel.<\/p>\n According to Interfax, the decree also sets the maximum strength of the central administration of the Russian Ministry of Defence at 13,400 posts. Of these, 4,930 are earmarked for federal civil servants.<\/p>\n Prior to Russia\u2019s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the Russian Armed Forces had a strength of just over one million. Since the start of the war, this figure has been increased six times.<\/p>\n Putin signed previous decrees in March 2026, when the number of military personnel was set at 1,502,000, and in June \u2014 when the total strength rose to 2,399,000. The July decision continues this series of adjustments to the staffing structure.<\/p>\n The decree explicitly links the increase to the establishment of military engineering units. The document makes no mention of the formation of additional combat units, nor does it specify their structure, numbers, chain of command or locations.<\/p>\n Historically, the Russian Federation\u2019s military engineering and road construction units were tasked with constructing facilities, setting up military bases, building and repairing roads, and providing mobilisation support. This may indicate an expansion of the army\u2019s infrastructure and logistical capabilities, but it does not provide grounds for equating 25,000 new military posts with the same number of combatants on the front line.<\/p>\n The decree specifies the authorised strength, rather than the actual number of personnel in the units. It contains no information on recruitment rates, timeframes for filling posts or the funding of new posts.<\/p>\n\n
What does the new decree entail?<\/h2>\n
The sixth increase since the start of the full-scale war<\/h2>\n
Construction units, rather than data on combat units<\/h2>\n
The staffing limit does not reflect the actual staffing levels<\/h2>\n