The British Defence Ministry reported that Russia is set to dramatically increase its defence spending in 2024.
Mentioning documents “apparently leaked from Russia’s Finance Ministry”, the UK’s MoD said in its latest intelligence update “Russia’s defence spending is set to surge to approximately 30 percent of total public expenditure in 2024.”.
The assessment continued: “The ministry proposes a defence budget of 10.8 trillion roubles, equivalent to approximately 6 percent of GDP and a 68 per cent increase over 2023.
“It is highly likely that Russia can support this level of defence spending through 2024, but only at the expense of the wider economy.
“Full details on Russian defence spending are always classified, but these figures suggests that Russia is preparing for multiple further years of fighting in Ukraine.
“This follows public comments by Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu on 27 September 2023, suggesting he was prepared for the conflict to continue into 2025.”
