Posted on 05/02/2018 1:38:26 PM PDT by BBell
Russian military spending fell by a fifth last year, its first decline in nearly two decades, with tighter purse-strings likely to affect Moscow's military activity ahead. But while global military spending rose one percent to $1,739 billion last year, Russia's fell 20 percent in real terms to $66.3 billion. Russia's finances are still fragile following a two-year economic downturn brought on by Western sanctions and a collapse in global oil prices.
STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Russian military spending fell by a fifth last year, its first decline in nearly two decades, with tighter purse-strings likely to affect Moscow's military activity ahead, a report by defense think-tank SIPRI showed on Wednesday.
Russia has flexed its military muscles during the last few years with its 2014 annexation of Ukraine's Crimea and deep involvement in the Syrian conflict serving as examples of its more belligerent stance.
But while global military spending rose one percent to $1,739 billion last year, Russia's fell 20 percent in real terms to $66.3 billion, the report from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) showed.
It was the first fall since 1998, a year of a major crisis when Russia's economy collapsed and it defaulted on domestic debt. The following year Vladimir Putin took power as prime minister and, on New Year's Eve, president.
(Excerpt) Read more at businessinsider.com ...
Reagan bankrupted these aholes in the eighties....time to do it again teach them just where in the pecking order they are.
China makes more from partnering with Trump.
So could Russia.
Russia (land area)is the largest country in the world.
They're an economic light weight though.
If Putin were the ‘new Hitler’ there would be a military buildup in Russia, so what gives with the propaganda campaign against Russia.
Theresa May’s national security advisor cannot yet identify suspects in the Skripal incident involving the “nerve agent” but the police sealed up the house with the cat and two mice dying inside.
The cat was Persian, obviously an Iranian agent working for Russia.....sarc
Hey Puttie,
Where is all that crappola you were spouting about restoring the russian military to its sovi et era pride.
Hey pal, shoot up any of your subs,
Lately?
” Russia’s finances are still fragile following a two-year economic downturn brought on by Western sanctions and a collapse in global oil prices.”
Hillary was the one colluding with the Russians, on Uranium One, NOT TRUMP.
The only thing they have left of the evil empiore is their nukes. Nukes cost a lot of money to maintain. They wear out and have to be replaced!!! There are those who think Russias nukes might not be reliable anymore!!!
When I was fighting the Cold War I read a statement from somebody that has always stuck with me: Russia is a Third World country with a nearly First World military.
That statement still stands true to this day.
They were heading to being economic heavyweights until they were derailed by some bright American petroleum engineers who figured out horizontal drilling and "fracking". And you can be sure that the "anti-fracking" eco-nutcase temper tantrum has its roots in Russia. They succeeded in doing the same thing to America's attempt to utilize fission nuclear energy.
Lesson from Reagan, Russia can be spent into bankruptcy and irrelevance.
Remember their aircraft carrier chugging and smoking through the English Channel? Looked like it was using coal and then I heard it had to be towed home from Syria.
Last year they were caught using offshore shell companies to funnel money to anti-fracking propaganda.
Here is one story about it - https://www.nationalreview.com/2017/07/anti-fracking-groups-russia-secret-funding-protects-kremlin-interests/
“If Putin were the ‘new Hitler’ there would be a military buildup in Russia, so what gives with the propaganda campaign against Russia.”
Careful, your critical thinking skills are showing.
Agree...in 9 months the good ol USA will be the world’s largest oil producer....then on to natural gas and LNG for exports!!!
Good link....thanks.
Of course this is a very old playbook for the Soviets/Russians. Back in college in the late 1960’s, I minored in Nuclear Science in working toward my chemistry PhD.
At that time, it looked like fission power plants would be a possible career path as a major plant was being built near my home town. It turned out to have been the last fission plant completed in the US.
I got to watch the whole ugly anti-nuke “thing” with every POSSIBLE route taken to denigrate and block the plant.
"This Kirill is not descended from heaven…he is not the messenger of the Lord God or Jesus Christ," Simeonov said. "Kirill is known as the cigarette metropolitan of Russia. From 1996, he got $14 billion from importing non-proprietary cigarettes," the deputy prime minister said. Simeonov said that Kirill had a private aircraft, a villa in Switzerland, a $30 000 watch "and he has the insolence to give judgment in front of the Bulgarian President" ... "And this is a spiritual person," Simeonov said, referring to Kirill. "A spiritual person, when he mentions the victims of these battles, he takes out their bones and throws them out of history. What is he? He is not an Eastern Orthodox cleric. He is Agent Mihailov, of the Soviet KGB, that is proven. A second-rate Soviet cop coming to me to say what is true and not true?
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