Putin Signs a Decree Increasing Russian Army: Over 2.4 Million, Including 1.5 Million Active-Duty Personnel

In brief: Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on Monday, Sept. 28, raising the size of Russia’s armed forces to 2.4 million, including 1.5 million active-duty military personnel. The increase comes as President Volodymyr Zelensky warned earlier Monday that Russia has already begun additional mobilization and is expanding its use of North Korean troops, while NATO braces for possible escalation.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree on Monday, Sept. 28, increasing the size of Russia’s armed forces to 2.4 million, including 1.5 million active-duty military personnel.

The document, No. 700, was published on Russia’s official legal information portal , marking the fourth time such a decree was signed this year, according to Russian state-owned media TASS .

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The document also instructs the Russian government to allocate the federal budget funds that the Russian Defense Ministry needs to carry out the increase.

The announcement comes as President Volodymyr Zelensky warned earlier on Monday that Russia has already begun additional mobilization and is expanding its use of North Korean troops , with over 8,000 already in Russia and up to 50,000 more planned.

The new ceiling is 15,500 higher than the one set in a decree that took effect on Aug. 1, which put the military at 2,426,130 personnel, including 1,535,000 troops.

In March, a presidential decree set the total at 2,391,770, and a June decree raised it to 2,399,130.

Overall, the authorized size of Russia’s military has grown by 49,860 since March, according to TASS.

Kyiv Post has not independently verified these numbers.

Citing new intelligence data from Ukraine’s Military Intelligence (HUR), Zelensky said more than 8,000 North Korean military personnel are currently in Russia, with preparations underway to deploy an additional 10,000.

“They increased the number of people who are recruited by different methods. They plan to increase and attract foreigners,” Zelensky warned.

Currently, one in 10 Russian prisoners of war (POWs) held in Ukraine is a foreign citizen.

Ukraine’s “ I Want to Live ” project – which helps Russian soldiers surrender – recorded at least 55 nationals, largely from Third World countries.

For several months now, Ukrainian authorities have repeatedly warned of Moscow’s possible mobilization in autumn 2026, following the State Duma parliamentary elections, which were held for the first time since the beginning of Russia’s war.

In July, Ukraine’s military and foreign intelligence agencies estimated that the Russian General Staff had developed a plan to mobilize an additional 600,000 people – 300,000 during 2026 and another 300,000 in 2027.

Several preparatory measures have been cited as signs of possible mobilization, including tighter military-registration controls and additional penalties for ignoring electronic summonses.

The Kremlin consistently denies new mobilization.

Meanwhile, Moscow-Pyongyang military cooperation ties appear to deepen, with North Korea emerging as one of Russia’s most critical wartime partners, supplying troops , weapons and manpower in exchange for financial and technological support .

Since at least the beginning of the year, several EU member states have warned that the conflict in Russia could spill beyond Ukraine’s borders, and arrive on NATO’s doorstep.

The decree comes just days after Putin, speaking on Friday, Sept. 25, denied that Moscow is preparing for war with Europe while accusing the Baltic states of violating the rights of Russian speakers and vowing that Russia would keep fighting for them.

During the same remarks, he also mocked Estonia’s security concerns as “political clowning.”

To justify its pressure on neighbors, including Ukraine before the full-scale invasion was launched, the Kremlin has long invoked alleged discrimination of Russian minorities.

Moscow has also repeatedly denied it planned to attack Ukraine. It still refers to the war in Ukraine as a “special military operation,” downplaying its significance.

This is precisely why concern keeps growing among NATO’s eastern flank.

Lithuania has recently reinforced protection of critical infrastructure, while the US confirmed a new troop rotation to the country.

Citing intelligence reports, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Sept. 17 that Russia is planning hybrid drone or missile strikes on countries backing Ukraine , including Poland, which Moscow could try to pass off as accidents.

Several of the bloc’s member states have already stopped referring to the drone incursions, sabotage campaigns and frequent airspace violations as hybrid attacks and incidents, instead calling them direct attacks.

Speaking to reports during the 81st United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York, Zelensky again warned that Russia could target another European country with drones, missiles or even a ground operation in a bid to break Western unity and distract from its battlefield losses.

Around the same time, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, who represented Russia during the UNGA as Putin did not attend, claimed that Europe might be in for a “self-fulfilling” prophecy due to its heavy spending on defense.

On Sept. 11, Dmitry Medvedev, former President and current Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council, threatened Lithuania would “disappear from the map of the world” in case of a conflict linked to Vilnius’ nuclear weapons ban lift.

He also claimed NATO would not invoke Article 5 to defend the country as that would mean a “global catastrophe.”

Just a week after, Lithuania announced an evacuation plan for Vilnius .

“One of the evacuation directions from the capital should be Poland,” Žygimantas Solovjovas, head of the Vilnius municipality’s Civil Protection Department told Polish Radio .

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