Putin Signs Decree Ordering The Russian Military To Boost Its Troop Numbers By 170,000

New soldiers attend an oath-taking ceremony at Novosibirsk's 39th Guards Rocket Division. Kirill Kukhmar / TASS 

Reuters: Russia increases maximum size of armed forces by 170,000 servicemen 

(Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree to increase the maximum number of servicemen in the Russian armed forces by 170,000 people, the Kremlin and the Defence Ministry said on Friday. According to the document, the regular strength of the armed forces is now set at 1,320,000 servicemen. 

"The increase in the full-time strength of the armed forces is due to the growing threats to our country associated with the special military operation and the ongoing expansion of NATO," the Russian defence ministry said. 

The ministry also said that the increase in the number of servicemen is due to the recruitment of contract personnel, and the military has no plans to significantly increase conscription or carry out a new wave of mobilisation.  

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Putin Signs Decree Ordering The Russian Military To Boost Its Troop Numbers By 170,000  

Ukraine war: Putin to boost Russian troop numbers by 15% -- BBC  

Putin orders Russian military to boost troop numbers by 170,000 -- AP  

Russia to Increase Size of Military But Says No Mobilization -- Bloomberg  

Putin signs decree boosting Russia's troop numbers by 15 percent -- France 24

Russia Raises The Conscription Age To 30 From 27

FILE PHOTO: Russian conscripts called up for military service depart for garrisons from a recruitment centre in Simferopol, Crimea, April 25, 2023. REUTERS/Alexey Pavlishak/File Photo  

Reuters: Russia Extends Conscription for Compulsory Military Service up to Age 30 

 (Reuters) -Russia's lower house of parliament voted on Tuesday to raise the maximum age at which men can be conscripted to 30 years from 27, increasing the number of young men liable for a year of compulsory military service at any one time. 

Last year, Russia announced a plan to boost its professional and conscripted combat personnel by more than 30% to 1.5 million, an ambitious task made harder by its heavy but undisclosed casualties in Ukraine. 

The new legislation, which comes into effect on Jan. 1, means men will be required to carry out a year of military service, or equivalent training during higher education, between the ages of 18 and 30, rather than 18 and 27 as now.  

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Update #1: Russia raises the maximum age of conscription as it seeks to replenish Ukraine forces (The Guardian)  

Update #2: Russia raises conscription age from 27 to 30 (Le Monde)  

WNU Editor: This tells me that the Kremlin is expecting the Russia - Ukraine war to continue for a long time. I originally thought that the war would end around 2023 - 2024. I am now not too sure about that.

Russian Arms Manufacturers Switching To A Six-Day 12-Hour Working Week

FILE PHOTO: Workers assemble tanks on the production floor at the Uralvagonzavod plant in Russia's Urals. © Sputnik / Sergey Mamontov  

RT: Russian arms manufacturers switch to six-day working week  

Shifts at defense enterprises may also be extended to 12 hours, a trade unions chief says  

Arms manufacturers in Sverdlovsk Region in Russia’s Urals are working longer weeks due to the conflict in Ukraine, a trade unions chief has said. 

Enterprises that are busy fulfilling government defense orders “are now working six days [a week] instead of five,” Andrey Vetluzhskykh, the head of the federation of local trade unions, said during a press conference in Ekaterinburg on Friday.  

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WNU Editor: The Kremlin has opened the spigot on defense spending .... Russia to spend $600 billion on defence and security by 2025 - source (Reuters).

Russia Deploys Nuclear Capable Bombers Near The Finnish Borders

Vladimir Putin has again increased his strategic nuclear bombers at an airbase near the Finnish and Norwegian borders, say reports. Pictured: A satellite image taken on October 7, 2022 shows seven Tu-160 strategic bombers (marked in red) and four Tu-95 aircraft (marked in yellow) at the Olenya airbase, Russia Kola Peninsula  

Daily Mail: Putin moves nuclear bombers to airbase near Finland and Norway borders as tensions rise over possible use of nukes 

* Putin has gradually increased number of strategic bombers at Olenya air base, in the extreme north of Russia 

* There were none on August 12, up to four Tu-160s on August 21, to 11 now - satellite images of the base show 

* The increasing number of bombers comes amid concerns Putin could use nuclear weapons in his war 

* Meanwhile, footage showed the moment an ammunition store inside Russia was hit by a Ukrainian strike 

* Ukraine war: Russia urges civilians to 'leave with their children' and evacuate Kherson for their own safety 

Russian president Vladimir Putin has increased the number of his strategic nuclear bombers stationed at an airbase near the Finnish and Norwegian borders, satellite images show. 

The move comes amid high tension over whether Putin plans to launch an atomic attack in Europe and his on-going invasion of Ukraine, which has suffered a string of embarrassing setbacks in recent months. 

The Russian tyrant has gradually increased the number of strategic bombers at Olenya air base - from none on August 12, to four supersonic Tu-160s on August 21, to 11 now.  

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Update #1: STRIKE FORCE Putin deploys 11 nuclear bombers just 20 miles from Nato border as Russia warns of apocalyptic World War 3 (The SUN) 

Update #2: Putin deploys 11 nuclear bombers just 20 miles from Nato border as Ukraine tensions rise (LBC) 

WNU Editor: The Russian Olenya air base is a major base on the Kola Peninsula and it has always had nuclear capable bombers stationed there at some time or another. This deployment, in view of current tensions, should not surprise anyone.

Russian Defense Spending To Increase 43%

Servicemen the 31st landing assault brigade of the Russia's Parachute Troops © Alexey Kudenko © Sputnik  

Bloomberg: Putin Readies 43% Defense Spending Hike Amid Plan for Longer War 

(Bloomberg) -- President Vladimir Putin is looking to spend far more on the military in the next two years than initially planned as Russia tailors the budget to the needs of a longer and increasingly costly war in Ukraine. 

 Defense expenditure is now set to exceed next year’s initial budget assumptions by more than 43%, while the related category of national security and law enforcement will go up by over 40%, according to a three-year fiscal plan seen by Bloomberg. 

Fiscal projections are in flux as priorities become skewed in favor of the military and away from areas like environmental protection. 

At almost 5 trillion rubles ($84 billion), or 3.3% of gross domestic product, outlays on “national defense” are now second to the government’s social programs as a share of spending.  

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Update #1: Amid Ukraine war, Putin hikes defence spending by 43%, police budget by 40% (Hindustan Times)  

Update #2: Russia to spend $600 bln on defence and security by 2025 - source (Reuters)  

WNU Editor: The Russian economy is rapidly becoming a wartime economy, and if this budget allocation is any indication, the expectation is that this will be the case for at least 2 years.

Has Russia Given Up On The T-14 Tank?

T-14 Armata Tank. Image Credit: Creative Commons.

Insider: Russia is trying to sell other countries the new 'cutting-edge' tank that Moscow itself apparently doesn't really want to buy 

* Russia's state-run arms maker is marketing the new T-14 Armata tank for export. 

* The T-14 is considered highly advanced, with features said to match or exceed those of NATO's tanks. 

* But Moscow has reduced its own purchases of Armatas, raising doubt about its ability to build them. 

Russia wants other nations to buy its advanced T-14 Armata, but Russia itself doesn't seem that interested in the new tank. 

The Russian army has bought few T-14s, and the Armata has been largely absent from what should have been its baptism of fire — the Ukraine war. 

Nonetheless, Rosoboronexport — the state arms company that manufactures the Armata — tried to sell the new tank at Army 2022, a big defense trade show sponsored by the Russian government.  

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Update: T-14 Armata: Is Russia Ready to Give Up On Its ‘Best’ Tank? (19FortyFive)  

WNU Editor: These T-14 tanks are expensive. I suspect that the Russian Ministry of Defense made the decision that it is cheaper to modernize their existing tank inventories than to buy thousands of new T-14s.

Putin Issues Decree To Increase The Size Of The Russian Armed Forces To Over 2 Million By January 2023

Kremlin.ru  

RT: Putin orders Russian military to boost manpower 

The Russian president signs a decree on adding 137,000 troops to the Armed Forces 

The size of the Russian military is set to increase to 1.15 million troops next year, in line with a decree that President Vladimir Putin signed on Thursday. 

The document, published on the government’s website, adds 137,000 to the ranks of the Armed Forces from January 1, 2023. It also instructs the cabinet to allocate the necessary funds for the expansion. 

The move comes amid the Russian military operation in Ukraine, launched in late February.  

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Putin Issues Decree To Increase The Size Of The Russian Armed Forces To Over 2 Million By January 2023  

Putin issues decree to increase army’s standard strength by 137,000 as of 2023 -- TASS 

Number of Russian Military Personnel to Increase by 137,000, Reach 1.15 Million -- Sputnik 

Putin Orders Increase in Russian Army Size to Over 2M -- Moscow Times 

Putin Orders Russian Military to Beef up Forces by 137,000 -- AP 

Putin signs decree to increase size of Russian armed forces -- Reuters  

Putin orders Russian military to find 137,000 new troops to join the ranks as his war in Ukraine takes a heavy toll -- Business Insider  

Putin signs decree to increase the Armed Forces by 137,000 by January 2023 -- News 360  

Putin to increase size of Russian armed forces by 137,000 starting in 2023 -- SKY News 

Putin signs decree to boost size of Russian forces -- Axios

The Impact Of The Ukraine War On Russian Conscription

Contract soldiers undergoing medical examinations before shipping out from the Yegorshino regional assembly station in Russia’s Sverdlovsk region. June 26, 2022. Donat Sorokin / TASS  

Meduza: A history of forced conscription Russia's first military draft of 2022 ends soon. That could spell danger for recent college graduates. 

Russia’s first military draft of 2022 will end on July 15. Since it began on April 1, enlistment offices have largely avoided using Chechen War-era methods of rounding up draftees, but that doesn’t mean they haven't broken laws. Protecting young people from forced recruitment is becoming increasingly difficult; if an enlistment office is given instructions to send a specific person to the army, there’s effectively no way to prevent the person from having to serve. Meduza looks at how Russia’s most recent conscription has played out. 

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Update #1: Putin’s Problematic Conscription and Possible Ramifications (Connor L. Mitchell, small Wars Journal)  

Update #2: Parents of Russian Conscripts Fear Their Sons Will Be Pressured Into Joining The War In Ukraine (RFE)  

WNU Editor: During a time of war no one in Russia is immune from being forced to serve .... Flyers prospect Ivan Fedotov sent to Arctic after forced conscription into Russian military, reports say (Philly Voice).

Shocking Russian Military Corruption Exposed (Video)

 

WNU Editor: Name me one major country where its military industrial complex was not corrupt. 

In the case of Russia, I still remember posting this story years ago .... Russian Defense Chief Shoigu Accused Of Owning $18 Million Mansion (RFE).

Russian Navy Starts Baltic Sea Drills

Russian Defence Ministry  

Moscow Times/AFP: Russian Navy Starts Baltic Sea Drills Amid Ukraine Tensions 

Dozens of Russian ships on Thursday took part in military exercises in the strategic Baltic Sea after Sweden and Finland recently announced bids to join NATO. 

Russia's Defense Ministry said in a statement that ships of its Baltic fleet, will "perform training tasks for the defense of sea lanes and fleet bases." 

It said that 60 ships and 40 aircraft were taking part in the maneuvers which will also take place on land at training grounds in the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad.  

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WNU Editor: NATO is conducting their exercises not far from these Russian exercises .... 16 NATO Allies and partners take part in exercise BALTOPS 22 (NATO). 

Russian Navy Starts Baltic Sea Drills 

Russia Starts Exercises With 60 Warships in Baltic Sea -- Newsweek  

Putin hits back at NATO war games with major Baltic drills after West flexes muscles on Russia’s doorstep -- The SUN  

Russia conducts land assault exercise in Kaliningrad -- Naval Recognition

Russian Defence Spending Leaps 40%

FILE PHOTO: A view shows an armoured convoy of pro-Russian troops outside Donetsk  

Reuters: With troops in Ukraine, Russia's defence spending leaps 40% 

(Reuters) - Russia's defence spending was up nearly 40% in the first four months of the year, according to preliminary data released by the finance ministry on Wednesday, almost three months into Moscow's large-scale military campaign in Ukraine. 

Russia spent 1.7 trillion roubles ($26.4 billion) on defence between January and April, almost half the 3.5 trillion roubles, or 2.6% of GDP, budgeted for all of 2022. 

The ministry had initially forecast a budget surplus of 1% of GDP, or 1.3 trillion roubles, for 2022, but now expects a deficit of at least 1.6 trillion roubles, allowing for support payouts to counter the effect of an unprecedented barrage of Western economic sanctions.

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Update #1: Russian Defense Spending Surges to $300M Per Day Amid Ukraine War (Moscow Times)  

Update #2: Russia's Spending $15.5 Million an Hour on Ukraine War (Newsweek)  

WNU Editor: What has helped defer the costs of this war in Russia are rising energy exports and profits .... Soaring oil and gas prices help Russia more than triple its current account surplus to $96 billion, its largest in 28 years (Business Insider).

Russia Drafts 134,500 Conscripts

Russian soldiers march in Almaty, Kazakhstan, January 13, 2022 (photo credit: REUTERS/PAVEL MIKHEYEV)  

Daily Mail: Putin orders 134,500 MORE conscripts into his army as Russian forces continue to struggle to make significant gains in Ukraine 

* Moscow claimed Putin's decree had nothing to do with on-going war in Ukraine 

* Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said none would be sent to 'hot spots' 

* Order came five weeks into Russia's invasion which has run into fierce resistance 

* Meanwhile, pro-Russian forces claimed almost total control of Donbas region 

* This week, Russia said it would re-focus its military on the separatist region 

* NATO said today there was no sign yet that Russian forces are pulling back 

President Vladimir Putin has ordered 134,500 more conscripts to join his army as Russia's forces continue to struggle to make significant gains in Ukraine. 

The Russian despot signed a decree today ordering the new conscripts into the army as part of Russia's annual spring draft. 

Despite Moscow's struggles, the defence ministry claimed the call-up had nothing to do with the war in Ukraine. 

The order came five weeks into Russia's invasion, which has run into fierce Ukrainian resistance that has inflicted devastating losses on Moscow's armies.  

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WNU Editor: This conscription drive is done every year at this time. It is a 12-month draft, which is mandatory for all male citizens ages 18–27. 

Russia Drafts 134,500 Conscripts  

Russia drafts 134,500 conscripts but says they won't go to Ukraine -- Reuters  

Putin orders 134,500 new conscripts into Russian army -- Axios  

Putin ordering draft of 135,000 amid difficulties in Ukraine war -- The Hill  

What Are Conscripts in Russia? Vladimir Putin Orders Over 100,000 More -- Newsweek

Russia Deploys A Mystery Munition In Ukraine To Strike Targets

 

Daily Mail: Russia is using secret 'decoy dart' missiles - which they have refused to export to stop the West reverse-engineering them – to strike Ukrainian targets 

* Iskander-M missiles are 'shot' through rocket launchers in Russia and Belarus 

* These powerful warheads can destroy big buildings and some fortified facilities 

* Darts are then used to fool Ukranian air defence so munitions land, its claimed 

* This works using heat-seeking and radar technology to confuse ground forces 

Russia is using secret 'decoy dart' missiles - which they have refused to export to stop the West reverse-engineering them – to strike Ukrainian targets, US intelligence has claimed. 

Mobile rocket launchers in Russia and Belarus are believed to be shooting Moscow's Iskander-M missiles while deploying decoy systems to fool Ukrainian air defence. 

These dart-shaped armaments, originally thought to be cluster bombs, have been seen on social media from almost the beginning of Russia's invasion.  

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Russia Deploys A Mystery Munition In Ukraine To Strike Targets 

Russia’s Use Of Iskander Ballistic Missiles In Ukraine Exposes Secret Decoy Capability -- Warzone/The Drive  

Russia Deploys a Mystery Munition in Ukraine -- DNYUZ/New York Times  

Ukrainians have found mystery warheads that look like darts. They're Russia's new weapon -- Business Insider  

Decoy darts: How Russia’s secret weapons fooled Ukraine -- The Telegraph  

Russia Is Firing Ballistic Missiles Packed With Decoys -- Daily Beast

U.S. Intelligence Says Russian Officers Have Doubts About A Full Scale Ukraine Invasion

T-72B3 tanks of the tank force of the Russian Western Military District conduct field firing at Kadamovsky Range. Erik Romanenko/TASS  

CNN: US intel indicates Russian officers have had doubts about full scale Ukraine invasion 

(CNN)Intercepted communications obtained by the US have revealed that some Russian officials have worried that a large-scale invasion of Ukraine would be costlier and more difficult than Russian President Vladimir Putin and other Kremlin leaders realize, according to four people familiar with the intelligence. 

Three of the sources said those officials include intelligence and military operatives. 

The officials have also grumbled about their plans being discovered and exposed publicly by western nations, two of the sources said, citing the intercepted communications. 

There is no evidence that these officials are opposed to the overall plan, or would revolt against Putin's orders, two of the sources said. Another source familiar with the US intelligence noted that Russia has a professional military that would be expected to effectively carry out Putin's orders.  

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Update: Some Russian officials fear invading Ukraine will be bloodier and tougher than Putin realizes, US intel finds (Business Insider)  

WNU Editor: LOL! I can see it now. Russian military officers rushing to CIA sources and telling them in confidence that they have "doubts" about a full scale Ukraine invasion. And these same CIA sources then rushing to CNN and telling them in confidence that there is dissension in the Russian military ranks.

4 Myths About The Russian Military

Russian President Vladimir Putin arrives to observe military exercises. RIA Novosti/Reuters  

Sebastian Roblin , 19fortyfive: 4 myths about the Russian military that just won't go away 

* Heightened tensions with Russia have given new life to some enduring myths about Russia's military. 

* It's mistaken to assume perceptions of the Russian and Soviet militaries necessarily remain true today. 

* Militaries change in response to experience and material circumstances, and Russia's is no different. 

 It's time to retire outdated stereotypes about the Russian military: As the possibility of an escalated Russian war in Ukraine looms larger and larger, a noted strategist and historian took to social media to argue Moscow's forces could be handily repelled by little hit-and-run warfare by Ukrainian civilians-at-arms.

"My call for a Ukraine national militia of quick-trained volunteers to attack stopped Russian columns opportunistically (the Finnish model) is misrepresented as a call for an endless guerilla war… After losing a few soldiers the Russians will withdraw (as in Chechnya). Losing 10,000 before breakfast never hurt the career of a Russian general, but with no surplus boys, Russia too is post-heroic. No tolerance of casualties." 

The invocation of Chechnya and Finland is peculiar as while both conflicts with Russia suggest certain operational and tactical lessons, neither ended victoriously for Russia's opponents.  

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WNU Editor: Many of my relatives have served in the Soviet and later Russian military. And they all tell me the same thing. Today's Russian military is nowhere near what it was even a decade ago. Today's Russian military is well trained, lethal with overwhelming firepower, high-tech, and very effective.

Russia's Artillery Is The Weapon That The Ukraine Army Should Be Most Fearful Of In The Event Of An Invasion

2S19 howitzers from the Western Military District's 138th Motorized Rifle Brigade fire during a training exercise at the Luga training area in Leningrad. Russian defense ministry photo  

Forbes: Russian Artillery Can Lob Shells At Ukrainian Troops With 10 Seconds’ Notice 

Most people have it all wrong. Visions of Russian tanks rolling across snowy Ukrainian fields, heralding a wider and surely much bloodier phase of the eight-year-old war in Ukraine, are fantasy. 

It’s the artillery that will signal the escalation. Hundreds of big guns and rocket launchers spread across scores of semi-independent Russian army battalion tactical groups, each a thousand men strong. 

In Russian doctrine, artillery—not tanks or infantry—is the decisive force. The other combat arms exist to position the artillery for the most devastating barrages, and to exploit the holes the guns smash in enemy defenses.  

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WNU Editor: David Axe's analysis is spot on. Russia's artillery is the hammer that the Russian Army will use in any invasion of Ukraine.

Russian Military Bases Near Ukraine

WNU Editor: This is an accurate view of most of the Russian staging areas and airbases near Ukraine. You can access the above Google map here (link here).

Will A Russian Invasion Of Ukraine Damage The Russian Defense Industry?

 

Breaking Defense: Russia’s defense industry might not survive an invasion of Ukraine  

Russian industry is already struggling with sanctions and export limits. An invasion of Ukraine could be disastrous for them - and, politically, might spell doom for Vladimir Putin's regime.  

KYIV: Russian troops on the Ukrainian borders of both Russia and its pliant ally, Belarus, still hover at the 100,000 mark. This is accompanied by a naval buildup in the Azov Sea where Russian vessels outnumber Ukrainian ships by a ratio of 4 to 1. While the Russian presence is understandably causing heartburn in Ukrainian circles, it’s also causing agita in a surprising place: inside Russia’s defense industry.

The most recent full-scale exhibition of Russian military hardware was at the Nov. 2021 Dubai Air Show, where the subject of whether Russian President Vladimir Putin would decide to have his troops mount an invasion was a popular one among the Russian delegation. This was the largest contingent of Russian defense industry representatives to ever attend this event, with a number of serious players attending in hopes of breaking through in the regional market.  

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WNU Editor: The Russian defense industry will adapt. And there are many customers around the world who will continue to buy Russian weapons .... sanctions or not.

Russia's Top General Outlines How The Military Will Safeguard Russian Security And National Interests

Chief of Russian General Staff and First Deputy Defense Minister Army General Valery Gerasimov. © Alexei Yereshko/Russian Defence Ministry Press Office/TASS  

CDR Salamander, US Naval Institute Blog: When the Russians Say What They Value, Listen to Them 

As we head into the holiday season moving our eyes from the Taiwan Strait to the Donbas region of Ukraine, let’s pause a bit on the later. 

Most readers here are up to speed on the huge Russian military buildup on the border there, so no reason to rehash that. 

If the diplomats and politicians fail and conflict does come – what can we expect from the Russians the the lessons they have learned about modern combat the last half decade ago? 

Well, let’s go to primary sources. In the spring of 2018, Russian General Staff Chief, General of the Army Valery Gerasimov gave a speech at the Russian Academy of Military Science. Of note, he’s held that position for 9 years.  

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WNU Editor: I have been posting the same thing for years .... Top Russian General Outlines How Russia Will Be Fighting Future Wars (April 17, 2018).

Russia's Navy Conducts 12 New Hypersonic Missile Tests

 

Reuters: Russia test-fires new hypersonic Tsirkon missiles from frigate, submarine 

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia test-fired around 10 new Tsirkon (Zircon) hypersonic cruise missiles from a frigate and two more from a submarine, Interfax news agency said on Friday citing northern fleet. 

Russian President Vladimir Putin has lauded the weapon as part of a new generation of unrivalled arms systems. 

Putin has called a missile test, conducted last week, "a big event in the country's life", adding that this was "a substantial step" in increasing Russia's defence capabilities. 

Some Western experts have questioned how advanced Russia's new generation of weapons is, while recognising that the combination of speed, manoeuvrability and altitude of hypersonic missiles makes them difficult to track and intercept.  

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Update: Russia conducts 12 new hypersonic missile tests (CGTN)  

WNU Editor: This is probably the last round of tests for this missile .... Testing of Tsirkon missile about to end, supplies to begin 2022 (TASS).