Main points
- Putin has announced cuts to defense spending due to rising inflation in Russia, but that won't stop his war against Ukraine.
- Despite economic difficulties, Russia continues to sell energy resources, which allows it to support the military effort.
Kremlin Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has announced a reduction in budget spending on “defense,” since its growth has become one of the factors driving the increase in inflation in Russia.
On air on Channel 24, Artem Bronzhukov, deputy director of the Politika analytical center, suggested how Putin's plan to reduce military spending will affect the Russian army's ability to continue fighting.
Putin will fight no matter what
The Russian economy is going through hard times, but that hardly worries Putin in terms of his desire to destroy Ukraine. He will simply task his economists with turning the taps, for example, reducing social benefits. However, Putin will not stop this war against Ukraine.
For Putin, this war is sacred. This is the main mission of his life. When economists talk about problems with the Russian economy, they are not lying. These problems exist and they are noticeable, but not critical, – said Bronzhukov.
He noted that Russia sells a sufficient amount of energy resources to India, China and even European countries. Until our Western partners smooth out this story, no matter how difficult it is for Putin's economy, the Kremlin will continue to fight.
If the Russians reduce military spending by 5-10%, it is unlikely that this will be able to fundamentally change the situation and deprive the Russian army of the ability to attack, added the deputy director of the analytical center “Politics”.
In addition, there is no stability regarding support from Western allies. Unfortunately, our planning horizon is much shorter than that of the Russians. The fact that Putin promised to reduce military spending does not mean that the Russian defense industry has stopped, or that the Kremlin no longer has money to recruit soldiers.
