Putin Announces Russia Will Permanently Increase the Size of its Armed Forces by Over 500,000 Troops to Defeat Ukraine and Force it to Negotiate a Peace Settlement Ending the War

Ukrainian Ministry of Defense predicts Russia will launch a massive offensive to seize control of more Ukrainian territory along with a second attack on the capital of Kyiv in early February

Following Ukraine’s attacks on its nuclear bomber bases earlier this month, Russia responded with largescale missile attacks on dozens of Ukrainian electrical power stations. Today, Russian President Vladimir Putin gave a televised address announcing Russia will permanently increase the size of its armed forces by over 500,000 troops, nearly tripling the number of its active-duty army troops, to defeat Ukraine during its long-planned winter offensive to force Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to negotiate a peace agreement ending the war as Russia has been seeking since the day after they invaded Ukraine in late February. Putin also vowed there would be no limits on spending for the Russian military and that he would give the Russian military everything it needed to defeat Ukraine and the collective West in Ukraine. He also proposed widening the age range for mandatory military service - currently between 18 and 27 - to 21 and 30. The number of contract soldiers is also expected to rise from over 400,000 to nearly 700,000.

President Putin also declared that Russia’s nuclear arsenal remained “the main guarantee for our security and territorial integrity”. Needless to say, the implications of this massive expansion of the Russian Army will likely be profound in terms of ensuring Russian victory in the war in Ukraine, perhaps by next spring. He also promised that the Russian Army will soon receive the state-of-the-art Sarmat (Satan II) intercontinental ballistic missiles which are capable of carrying at least ten nuclear warheads and decoys and that Russian Navy surface ships would begin being fitted with its latest nuclear-capable Zircon hypersonic missiles next month. Back in February, Putin threatened to use to nuke submarine launched Zircon missiles, now being mass produced by Russia, to destroy Washington DC in less than five minutes warning before President Joe Biden could escape on Air Force One