Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed on June 27 that Moscow plans to cut its military expenditure beginning next year, in a rebuke of NATO members' plans to increase defense spending to 5% of GDP.
Putin's claims will likely be met with harsh skepticism from Western officials as Russia's military spending has continued to increase throughout its ongoing invasion of Ukraine.
The Kyiv Independent cannot verify claims made by Putin. The Russian president did not provide any specifics as to how Moscow plans to cut military spending, but added there has yet to be an agreement between ministries.
"We are planning to reduce defence spending. For us, next year and the year after, over the next three-year period, we are planning for this," Putin told reporters during a visit to Belarus. "Europe is thinking about how to increase its spending, on the contrary. So who is preparing for some kind of aggressive actions? Us or them?" Putin continued.
Putin's comments comes as NATO allies are increasingly concerned about Russia's military capabilities, including future threats to alliance members as well as ongoing sabotage efforts.
On June 25, NATO member states agreed to a new defense spending benchmark, committing to allocate 5% of their GDP annually to defense and security-related expenditures by 2035.
The decision comes as NATO allies increasingly believe Russia could rebuild sufficient military capacity to challenge the alliance within five years, with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte warning that allies must act urgently to prepare for future threats.
"We see Russia's deadly terror from the skies over Ukraine every day. We must be able to defend ourselves from such attacks," Rutte said during a press briefing on June 23. "Our security environment has changed, and not for the better. The threats we face today demand that we do far more," he added.
Various European intelligence agencies as well as officials have increasingly delivered dire warnings about the threat emanating from Russia and Europe's current lack of preparedness. German intelligence chief Bruno Kahl told a parliamentary hearing in October that Russia will have the military capabilities to be able to attack NATO by 2030.
In 2024, Russia’s military spending surpassed the combined defense budgets of all European nations. Russia’s total defense expenditures surged by 42% in real terms amounting to $462 billion, according to the data by the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS).
By comparison, total defense spending across Europe, including the U.K. and EU member states, increased by nearly 12% last year to $457 billion, slightly trailing Moscow’s budget.
The Moscow Times reported in December that the Kremlin had spent an unprecedented $43 billion in the third quarter of 2024 alone.
Martin Fornusek
(Updated: )
