Russia is greatly increasing the military budget for the war in Ukraine

This week, Russia published its draft budget for next year. The numbers made it clear that the Kremlin plans to sharply increase spending on the Ukraine war - despite the country's rampant debt, the New York Times reports.

Both Ukraine and Russia are finding it difficult to finance the ongoing war of attrition, which is approaching its fifth anniversary. The military budget signals that Vladimir Putin does not want to stop it.

Russia plans to spend more than $200 billion on its military in 2027 — an increase of more than a quarter from what the latest budget first indicated for 2026, according to the newspaper.

At the opening of the State Duma, Russia's lower house of parliament, Putin exuded confidence, saying Russia's financial system and economy are doing well.

Former lieutenant colonel and military expert Jörgen Elfving believes that it is not entirely clear which part of the Russian military could most likely be strengthened by this money - if Russia is even strengthened at all.

- It can probably be assumed that most of the money goes to measures aimed at continuing the war in Ukraine. But then there is also a significant number of new dressings to be set up, which also costs money. So it is not certain that this budget increase will be decisive for the war, he says and continues:

- There is also another factor to consider in this context, and that is the widespread corruption in Russia - not least in the armed forces. The question is how much of this money is used properly and how much is lost in various pockets along the way.

Could this large sum be a way for Putin to be intimidated?

- That is not the question. In principle, people have already done the scaring through the recent drone and robot attacks against civilian targets in Ukraine.

Money does not automatically turn a war around, says Elfving. There must be resilience and an ability to attract and recruit staff.

Torbjörn Becker, director of the Eastern Economic Institute at the School of Economics, says that Russia probably spends between 40 and 45 percent of its city budget on military and security. These are figures that affect the public, he believes.

- By definition, this means that all other areas of expenditure have been prioritized, which is normally what people are generally more interested in, namely healthcare and schools and roads.

At the same time, Putin's statement about a good economy does not add up, according to Becker. Russia has significant inflation and high interest rates due to the war, and the national debt is increasing. The budget deficit next year is expected to exceed 60 billion dollars, according to the New York Times.

- This means that in the future you may be forced to make even tougher priorities, because you are now putting so much on the military, he says.