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00:00In Rostov-on-Don, just two hours from the Ukrainian border, the Russian army is flexing
00:07its propaganda muscle.
00:09Many curious visitors have come to admire Ukrainian military hardware and Western tanks
00:15captured by Russian forces in Ukraine.
00:18On the sidelines of the exhibition, there's a recruitment office where volunteers can
00:22sign up to join the fight.
00:25And even after two and a half years of war, this soldier claims there's still enthusiasm.
00:30The people's motivation is only growing.
00:34People are willing and ready to protect their motherland.
00:37People are getting a lot of information first hand, and so they come here to make a decision.
00:43On Monday, President Vladimir Putin ordered an expansion of the army's ranks, the third
00:48time he's done so since the start of the war in Ukraine.
00:52The decree would add some 180,000 soldiers, bringing the number of active servicemen to
00:581.5 million.
01:00It comes as Russian troops are slowly but surely advancing along the front line in eastern
01:04Ukraine while also trying to fight back Kiev's forces in Russia's Kursk region.
01:10One analyst says the Kremlin's latest reconstitution effort would mean a significant reordering
01:16of Russia's economy and labour market.
01:19Expanding the force would require significant investment in the production of new equipment,
01:23the recruitment of additional professional soldiers in a society that has recently grown
01:27accustomed to high wages and expensive social entitlements and benefits, as well as the
01:32construction of new military-based infrastructure.
01:35Moscow has been successfully recruiting volunteers on lucrative contracts to fight in Ukraine,
01:41though like Kiev's forces, there have been heavy losses.
01:45According to the Ukrainian military, more than 600,000 Russian soldiers have died since
01:50February 2022.
01:52However, independent Russian media outlets have suggested the toll was between 106,000
01:59and 140,000 by June.