Mr. Putin asked the Russian army to increase its force to 1.5 million troops.

In a decree published on the Kremlin website, Mr Putin ordered an increase in the overall size of the armed forces to 2.38 million people, of whom he said 1.5 million should be active military personnel.

Russian soldiers walk at an event in Moscow, Russia. Photo: Reuters

Such an increase would put Russia ahead of the US and India in terms of the number of active combat troops and second only to China in size, according to data from the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS). China has more than 2 million active military personnel, the IISS said.

This would be the third time Mr Putin has expanded troop levels since the conflict with Ukraine began in February 2022. The decision comes as Russian forces are stepping up their advance on Ukraine's eastern front and trying to push Kiev forces back from Russia's Kursk region.

The conflict, now in its third year and showing no signs of ending anytime soon, has prompted both Ukraine and Russia to increase the size of their armies and to make up for heavy losses on the battlefield. Both sides say the exact scale of their losses is a military secret.

Andrei Kartapolov, chairman of the Russian State Duma's Defense Committee, said the increase in standing troops was part of a plan to reform the armed forces and to match what he described as the current regional and international situation.

"For example, we now need to create new military structures and units to ensure security in the northwest (of Russia) because Finland, which shares a border with us, has joined NATO," Kartapolov told Parlamentskaya Gazeta. "And for this to happen, we need to increase the number of troops."

Since 2022, Mr. Putin has officially ordered two increases in combat troops - to 137,000 and 170,000 troops, respectively.

Huy Hoang (according to TASS, AP, Reuters)

Source: https://www.congluan.vn/tong-thong-putin-yeu-cau-quan-doi-nga-tang-luc-luong-len-15-trieu-quan-post312665.html