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Size of Russian armed forces decreases by nearly 300 personnel

The size of the Russian Armed Forces should stand at 1,902,758 personnel

© Yuri Smityuk/TASS

MOSCOW, January 1. /TASS/. The size of the Russian Armed Forces has decreased by nearly 300 personnel on January 1, according to a decree signed earlier by the country’s president Vladimir Putin.

"The size of the Russian Armed Forces should stand at 1,902,758 personnel, including 1,013,628 military servicemen," the decree reads.

The same document invalidated the previous decrees signed on July 8, 2016, and March 29, 2017. According to the last decree, the size of the Russian Armed Forces was increased to 1,903,051 personnel. Thus, the decree that came into effect on January 1, reduces the size by 293 personnel.

Russia's Armed Forces currently includes the Army Ground Forces, Navy and Aerospace Force. There are also airborne forces, strategic missile forces and special forces.

The Russian Defense Ministry’s civilian staff, including cooks, drivers, psychologists and doctors, constitutes about 40% of the Armed Forces personnel.

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