Short answers, pulled from the story.
The Russian Armed Forces have about one million active-duty personnel and close to two million reservists, making them the world's fifth-largest military force. Russia planned to expand active personnel to 1.5 million by the end of 2024; in December 2022 Putin increased the authorised strength from 1.15 million to 1.5 million.
The Russian Armed Forces maintain the world's largest stockpile of nuclear weapons. They also operate the world's second-largest fleet of ballistic missile submarines and are one of only three militaries globally, alongside the United States and China, to operate strategic bombers.
The Russian Armed Forces were officially established on the 7th of May 1992, when President Boris Yeltsin signed a decree creating them and assumed the duties of Supreme Commander-in-Chief. Colonel General Pavel Grachev became the first Minister of Defence.
The New Look reform was launched in October 2008 by Defence Minister Anatoly Serdyukov and Chief of the General Staff General Nikolai Makarov. It reorganised nine military districts into four joint operational commands, replaced most divisions with leaner manoeuvre brigades, and created fully manned battalion tactical groups. Analysts described it as the most radical changes in the Russian military since the founding of the Red Army in 1918.
By October 2024 it was estimated that over 600,000 Russian soldiers had been killed or wounded in Ukraine. By June 2025, Ukrainian and Western estimates surpassed one million total casualties. In January 2026, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said up to 25,000 Russian soldiers were being killed per month.
The Unmanned Systems Forces is the newest branch of the Russian Armed Forces, officially created on the 12th of November 2025. It was established to centralise the development, deployment, and operational command of unmanned aerial, ground, and naval systems, and to integrate autonomous platforms into existing military structures.