Russian military spending putting pressure on gov’t finances - British intelligence

Russia's military spending elevated, which is putting pressure on Russian government finances.

That’s according to UK Ministry of Defense, referring to intelligence data, Ukrinform reports.

As noted, on May 25, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) said Russia's military spending grew by 9.2% in 2022 to $86.4 billion. SIPRI assesses this equates to 4.1% of Russia's gross domestic product.

"Russia's true military spending is highly uncertain due to the increased use of classified budget lines, especially since February 2022, and the lack of transparency," British defense officials wrote on Twitter.

Read also: War update: Russians launch 62 air strikes, open fire with MLRS 54 times

Russia only recently resumed publishing headline expenditure breakdowns after suspending this in May 2022.

"It is almost certain that military spending remains elevated, and this is putting pressure on Russian government finances," the summary emphasizes.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, foreign investors who pulled from the Russian market and sold their businesses withdrew about $36 billion in one year.