Russia is increasing the size of its army to 1.5 million active soldiers due to "threats" along its borders, including hostility in the West, the Kremlin said on Tuesday. President Vladimir Putin signed on Monday a decree boosting the number of active Russian troops by 180,

The Kremlin said on Tuesday that an order by President Vladimir Putin to transform Russia's army into the second largest in the world was needed to address growing threats on Russia's western borders and instability to the east.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered the country’s military to increase its number of troops by 180,000 to a total of 1.5 million, as Moscow’s military action in Ukraine drags on for more than 2 ½ years.