War Above All: The kremlin Systematically Increases Military Spending
russian authorities continue to ramp up funding for the war against Ukraine, significantly exceeding the planned budget.
▫️ By the end of 2025, russia’s military spending is nearly 20% higher than initially planned.
▫️ According to russia’s ministry of defense, total military expenditures will reach 15.9 trillion rubles ($198.8 billion), or 7.3% of GDP. This is 2.4 trillion rubles ($30 billion) more than budgeted. On average, the state spends 213 billion rubles per week ($2.7 billion) on the war—an amount comparable to the annual budget of a large russian region.
▫️ These figures cover only ministry of defense spending. Additional costs borne by regional governments include payments to contract soldiers, compensation to families of the fallen, treatment of the wounded, prosthetics, and burials. For many regions, this has become an overwhelming financial burden.
Even amid a budget deficit and shrinking oil and gas revenues, the kremlin continues to increase military spending. This policy shows that for putin, war and imperial ambitions matter more than the country’s economic stability.
