In 2024, the contract with the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation signed up to 407.2 thousand people.
This follows from the data on the expenses of the federal budget of the Russian Federation for 2024, the Russian publication “Important History” reports.
It is noted that 407.2 thousand people are the maximum assessment of the number of the Russian army, published in 2024, while the minimum assessment of the number of recruits is 374.2 thousand people.
The difference in assessments is due to the fact that in August 2024, Vladimir Putin made a federal payment for the conclusion of an agreement from 195 thousand rubles to 400 thousand rubles. Because of this, it is difficult to calculate the exact number of contractors for the 3rd quarter of 2024, the publication notes.
The publication notes that such data show that the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation probably overestimates the number of new contractors:
- At the end of 2024, the Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation Andriy Belousov said that the contract for the service concluded 427 thousand people – this is 5-15% higher than the data on budget expenditures;
- The assessment of the Deputy Chairman of the Security Council Dmitry Medvedev – 450 thousand contracts are even more diverse with budget expenditures.
The publication also noticed a decrease in recruiting recruits to the Russian army in 2024 compared to 2023:
According to budget expenditures, in the 4th quarter of 2024 the contract was signed an average of 1,700 people a day. This is 1.3 times less than in the same period of last year. Such a number of people is not enough to achieve the declared bilateral numbers.
Putin recently stated that by the summer of 2025 the number of those who entered into a contract for participation in the war against Ukraine increased twice compared to the previous year. However, although data on the expenditures of the federal budget of the Russian Federation for 2025 have not yet been published, you can evaluate the real bets of recruiters by paying one bonus with new contractors from regional budgets.
They show that in the spring of 2025 the pace of the set, on the contrary, decreased, – “important stories” emphasized.
The publication compared data from three regions from the annual parts of the Russian Federation, which differ in population and payments for new contractors, and payments have not changed over the past nine months:
- In the region of Kemerovo – a large Siberian region with a population of more than 2.5 million people – 800 thousand rubles are paid for the conclusion of the contract. Data on the cost of the region for these bonuses show that in none of the months of 2025 the set rates did not exceed the indicators of the late 2024. If in November-December contracts were an average of 30 people a day, then in May this year is half as much, about 15 people;
- The pace of set of contractors in one of the regions of the North Caucasus-Kabardin-Balkaria in can be one and a half times compared to the end of 2025: from nine to six recruits per day. The authorities of the republic give out new contractors to one of the largest disposable bonuses in the Russian Federation-1.5 million rubles (maximum payment in Russia now is 2,65 million rubles in the Hunt-Mansius Autonomous Region);
- In the central Russian region of Orlovsky, where more than 600,000 people live, in the spring of 2025 less contractors were recruited than in the second half of the previous year. In August 2024, local authorities raised a regional payment to the minimum amount recommended by the Putin regions, and then-400 thousand rubles and have not been considered since then.
It is noted that a similar trend in the set in the set is visible in other regions that are available data.
The figure of Putin – 1800 new contracts the day before the summer of 2025 – can be overestimated almost twice – the newspaper emphasizes.
Thus, the researcher from the German Institute of International Relations and Security (SWP) Janis Klug, who evaluates the indicators of the recruitment in the Russian army in accordance with one temporary payments, updated the calculations as of May.
According to him, about 1000 people are currently concluding on average contracts for military service, the newspaper notes.
Kluga analysis does not show two time acceleration in May, which Putin is talking about.
In December last year, there was a surge in payments – obviously, seasonal: usually at the end of the year a lot of money was spent. In January, on the contrary, a seasonal decrease occurs in the holidays. In the spring, the pace increased, but at the end of April, May began to decline, ”the clubs emphasize.
In his opinion, the growth in the first months of 2025 is due to the fact that against the backdrop of discussion of peace negotiations with the participation of the Russian Federation, Ukraine and the USA, many signed contracts, hoping to avoid participating in serious battles during payment. However, for a long time, such motivation cannot be stored, and after the expected decrease has occurred.
Source: “An important story”
Source: Racurs
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.