Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu on Wednesday unveiled a plan to increase the size of Russia’s military to 1.5 million troops, an initiative backed by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Russia had about 1 million troops in its army at the beginning of the year, and the number was supposed to reach 1.15 million next year, but Shoigu said a further increase is needed to “guarantee the fulfillment of tasks to ensure Russia’s security.”
One reason for the increase that Shoigu cited was Sweden and Finland’s potential NATO membership. He said if the two Nordic nations joined the Western military alliance, Russia would have to deploy “the corresponding group of forces” to northwestern Russia.
Putin and other Russian officials have previously said that he doesn’t view Finland and Sweden joining NATO as much of a threat as Ukraine’s prospective membership, but they said Moscow would respond to the expansion of NATO military infrastructure. Finland has an over 800-mile border with Russia, an area that will likely be reinforced by Moscow if Helsinki is admitted into NATO.
Back in September, Putin ordered the mobilization of 300,000 fresh troops for his war effort in Ukraine, and Russia has been reinforcing its positions along the frontlines in Ukraine. Another mobilization is possible, but at this point, there’s no sign Putin hasn’t made a decision to call up more troops, and Russian officials say the current numbers are sufficient.
I use to play Axis & Allies board game, and one thing that always beat the western Axis powers was cheap mass purchase of infantry against aircraft and tanks.
How did that model apply to Russia in Ukraine?
It’s called 3:1 ratio. infantry sacrifice for every thank and air plane unit they use to push forward. Ukraine is burning thru more tanks and artillery right now and they are heavily dependent on US and NATO armaments. In a bum rush move, and even encircling those units, Ukraine can’t just replenish them fast enough.
I believe there will be a world war III because we don’t seem to have learned anything from the first two world wars…NATO should put a plug in it…
The people who were around for those wars are just about all gone. The present cast of characters have never experienced that kind of conflict but may find out in the not too distant future how devastating total war can be.
Brave New world indeed….
Russia increasing the size of its Army? Dare any Putin Lover here say anything negative about it in the name of antiwar.
“Shoigu said if the two Nordic nations joined the Western military alliance, Russia would have to deploy “the corresponding group of forces” to northwestern Russia.”
Why? Are these two Nordic nations planning an invasion of Russia?
Way to keep the Russia people thinking NATO will one day come and take their kids.
And so they never had 1.5 Million soldiers and 2 Million in Reserve?
If they going to put it on paper might as well round it up to 5 million strong. That may scare somebody.
In their “national security interests” as NATO was arrayed on their borders or near borders, BEFORE they stopped Zelensky “killing his own people.”
Poland is mobilizing. It has made a mass call up of double its peacetime army.
This is “temporary” meaning it is now said to be for 90 days. Right, the American Civil War started out with 90 day enlistments for the same reasons.
What matters is the BOTH Russia and NATO are seeing mass mobilization of the sort that has not happened since 1939. Never in the Cold War did this happen.
It just keeps getting better and better. Belarus also appears to be mobilizing.
It’s possible that Russia only wants to keep a large number of Ukraine forces on the western side of Ukraine while the battles are waged on the east side of Ukraine. But it’s also possible that Russia intends to stop the flow of armaments that are coming from into Ukraine from Poland.