Vladimir Putin may be gearing up for a direct conflict with Nato after a wave of new recruits joined the Russian Armed Forces, analysts have warned.
A Russian insider has revealed to the prestigious Institute for the Study of War (ISW) think tank that 292,000 new recruits had signed contracts with the Russian Ministry of Defence between January and mid-September this year alone.
Some 181,890 personnel make up the entire British Armed Forces.
The ISW said the source has "consistently provided accurate reports about changes in the Russian military command".
And the insider said that many of the fresh recruits were hired to join a strategic reserve of forces which Mr Putin has been quietly building up since July.
Analysts have warned Vladimir Putin may be gearing up for a direct conflict with Nato
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The think tank said that the declining rate of casualties has given the Russian Ministry of Defence the space to replenish its reserve forces.
According to the ISW, the reports "indicate that the Kremlin is not interested in ending its war against Ukraine but remains committed to achieving its war goals on the battlefield and may be preparing for a conflict with [Nato].
"The reported creation of a strategic reserve as part of wider Kremlin preparations for a possible Russia-Nato conflict in the future, particularly as Russia intensifies its youth military-patriotic programmes that aim to recruit Russian youth into the military in the years to come."
On Monday, Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper announced that British fighter planes were prepared to "confront" Russian aircraft after a host of incursions into Nato airspace in recent weeks.
The declining rate of casualties has given the Russian Ministry of Defence the space to replenish their reserve forces
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The infractions came amid Russia's joint military exercises with ally Belarus, known as Zapad 2025.
Despite the size of this year's drills being much smaller than in 2021, analysts compared them to Mr Putin's exercises ahead of the 2008 invasion of Georgia and Ukraine in 2022.
Natia Seskuria, an associate fellow at the Royal United Services Institute (Rusi) told the Daily Mail: "We know that Russia has used these drills to sort of test different war game scenarios.
"In 2008 against Georgia and then against Ukraine, Zapad drills preceded the actual military operations, the wars that Russia has launched against these countries.
The infractions came amid Russia's joint military exercises with ally Belarus, known as Zapad 2025
| GETTY"The scale is much more reduced. But it's also an opportunity for Russia to basically test different scenarios and also to demonstrate to the West that they are still committed to their plans, which include, of course, primarily winning the war in Ukraine."
US President Donald Trump has appeared to take a harsher stance on Russia in recent days.
On his Truth Social platform, Mr Trump suggested that Ukraine may be able to "win all" of its lost territory back from Mr Putin's forces.
The President wrote: "With time, patience, and the financial support of Europe and, in particular, Nato, the original borders from where this War started, is very much an option.
"Why not? Russia has been fighting aimlessly for three and a half years a war that should have taken a real military power less than a week to win."
Mr Trump added that "Putin and Russia are in BIG economic trouble, and this is the time for Ukraine to act.
"We will continue to supply weapons to Nato for Nato to do what they want with them."