According to Putin, the Russian government is working on a plan for the gradual reduction of the defense budget over the next three years. He noted that Russia allegedly does not seek to get involved in the new arms race, even though the Western countries, including NATO members, increase their defense budgets to 5% of the gross domestic product.
Putin's statement was made after last week the Minister of Economic Development of Russia Maxim Reshetnikov said that the country is on the verge of a recession.
However, experts and Western leaders skeptically evaluate these statements, noting that the current military expenses of Russia have already reached record indicators – about 6.3% of GDP, which is the highest level of cold war, Reuters said. At the same time, more than a third of the state budget goes to the needs of the army, which leads to inflation, personnel deficiency and imbalance in the economy.
The seriousness of the economic situation is also evidenced by the words of the head of the Central Bank of Russia Elvira Nabiullina. The article provides a frank warning of the official that the Russian economy is already approaching the limit of its capabilities.
The rate of expenses for war and the mobilization of resources lead to “overheating” of the economy. She warned about the upcoming shortage of labor and inflation in December 2022, wrote The Moscow Times. Now, according to her, most resources have already been exhausted.
