let's now talk about Russia's growing military might Russia is pouring vast resources into its military at the center of this military expansion is basically a Kremlin de decree that came out on Monday According to which the Russian president Wladimir Putin has ordered the conscription of 133,000 new servicemen this draft will run from the 1st of October until the end of the year Reports say young men between the ages of 18 and 30 will serve in the military units across Russia for 12 months adding another wave of manpower to the already substantial Russian army but you see there is something important to note here these conscripts are not being sent to fighting Ukraine and this raises a an even bigger question why does Russia actually need these many new soldiers and what is it preparing for let's just look at the bigger picture here this is not just about drafting more men into the army in fact Putin has already ordered a massive expansion of the military remember calling for 180,000 additional troops and aiming to bring the total number of active servicemen to 1. 5 million 1. 5 million let that sink in 1.
5 million active troops making it the second largest military force in the world so what's really driving this massive increase in military might Russia has not given out the exact reason behind the conscription but despite what Russia really says recent history indicates that the Autumn conscription Drve is likely to be linked to the ongoing war in Ukraine ahead of winter a period in which both sides Target each other's energy infrastructure and distribution lines to affect transportation of key items like food grains agriculture it s am made severely cold and harsh conditions in the northern hemisphere you see Russia has done similar such conscriptions in the past despite Russia initially stating otherwise conscripts were still reportedly deployed along the Russia Ukraine border and could be called upon to sign contracts and be battle ready the war which began in 2022 continues to drag on with no end inside despite the heavy losses both in Manpower as well as equipment Russia has no intention really of backing down it seems in fact reports suggest that it's only doubling down the Kremlin as per reports is pumping in more money than ever into its defense sector making it clear that military strength remains a top priority by 2025 defense spending will hit a record 13. 5 trillion rubles that's about 120 billion doar just to put that in perspective that's 25% more than what Russia is spending this year which was already a record by the way 25% more and this is happening despite the enormous economic pressures caused by Western sanctions Russia's leaders have reportedly embraced what economists call military kinism what is that basically this means the government is channeling vast sums of money into the military which is having a ripple effect across the entire economy it's driving inflation yes but it's also fueling economic growth in some sectors particularly those tied to military production in Moscow it seems the narrative is quite clear Putin has repeatedly said that all of Russia's objectives in Ukraine will be met perhaps fueled by recent gains on the battlefield particularly in eastern Ukraine but this is not just about winning the war in Ukraine anymore the Kremlin perhaps sees this as a larger more existential struggle a standoff with the West that demands a much larger more ful military and that's exactly what they seem to be building the numbers further speak for themselves Russia's massive investment in its military and defense sector now accounting for nearly 40% of the government's total spending that's a staggering amount now let's focus on the economy specifically despite sanctions and the lack of access to Western markets as per reports Russia's economy is showing signs of solid growth industrial out put largely driven by military production is reportedly rising in fact in July alone industrial production was up 3. 3% and overall Russia's GDP grew by 4.
