Vladimir Putin has dismissed Russia’s ballooning deficit as “not a critical risk” to the economy despite growing alarm over the state of public finances due to the war.
Russia’s budget deficit grew by 40% from January to July this year to 2.8% of gross domestic product, as Ukraine’s deep strike drone campaign put a strain on manufacturing. The official deficit target for this year is 1.6% of GDP.
The Russian economy slowed sharply last year and the government has been forced to raise taxes and increase borrowing to finance Moscow’s war effort.
"Considering that we have one of the lowest levels of national debt in the world, there is nothing critical here," Putin said at an economic forum in the Russian far eastern city of Vladivostok.
Ukrainian strikes on energy infrastructure in Russia have sparked fuel shortages across the country, with footage showing fights erupting at the pumps. Many regions have been forced to ration fuel, with Moscow increasingly seeking to import energy from neighbouring countries.
The UK has summoned the Russian charge d’affaires over Moscow's involvement in the Leipzig airport attack.
Downing Street said the UK government stands "in full solidarity" with Germany following what they described as an "egregious and aggressive attack".
The prime minister's official spokesperson added: "Any attempt by Russia to undermine our united resolve is futile ... That is why today we have summoned the Russian charge d’affaires to condemn the attack in the strongest possible terms."
Vladimir Putin has said that the size of Russia’s ballooning deficit will pose “no critical risk” to the economy. It comes amid growing fears over the state of the Russian economy, which is facing fuel shortages due to Ukrainian drone strikes.
Russian aviation watchdog Rosaviatsiya said that it had not received any withdrawal notifications from any foreign airlines, Interfax news agency reported, citing the agency's head, Dmitriy Yadrov. He said that the Russian foreign ministry and the watchdog would cooperate with the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) on civilian flights to and from Russia. It comes after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned that flights in Russia had become unsafe.
Germany's economy ministry is making approximately €250 million in additional funds available to Ukraine via the KfW development bank for urgently needed energy infrastructure repairs ahead of winter, it said on Thursday. Russia has repeatedly focused its attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure throughout the war, in a bid to hit Ukrainian public morale.
One person was killed and four people injured in a drone attack on a passenger bus in Russia's Belgorod region, local authorities claimed. Ukraine has not commented on the attack and insists that its military does not target civilians. Kyiv has recently expanded its deep strike campaign, launching drone attacks far behind enemy lines.
The Kremlin said Germany was displaying an inconsistent and absurd position by choosing to shutter the Russian consulate in Bonn, a decision Berlin took after a drone incident at the Leipzig/Halle Airport. Germany's response measures included the closure of a Russian cultural centre in Berlin and the consulate in Bonn. On Tuesday, president Vladimir Putin accused Germany of planting evidence in order to blame Moscow for the incident.
Ukraine is finalising a drone deal with Germany, president Volodymyr Zelensky said on Wednesday after a call with German chancellor Friedrich Merz. The agreement — proposed by Ukraine several months ago — is expected to cover the joint development of various types of drones, missiles and related software. "Our teams are already finalising the text of the drone deal, and this will, among other things, definitely provide both Germany and Ukraine with additional defence capabilities," Zelensky said on the Telegram app. The deal will build on existing German-Ukrainian defence cooperation, including a multi-million-euro programme to supply to Kyiv some 15,000 Strila interceptor drones designed to counter Shahed-type attack drones.
Russia will shutter German cultural centres across the country, foreign minister Sergey Lavrov said this morning. The move comes after Berlin blamed Moscow for an attempted attack at Leipzig/Halle Airport last month and announced the closure of both the Russian Consulate in Bonn and the Russian House cultural centre in the German capital. Lavrov said that cultural centres belonging to Germany’s Goethe-Institut would be closed in Moscow, St Petersburg and Yekaterinburg, adding that any other response would show a lack of “self-respect” on Russia’s part. Speaking at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, Lavrov said that Germany “could not have failed to understand” that the closure of the Russian House would “signify the end of their cultural presence in Russia.” A drone laden with explosives was found near a Ukrainian plane at Leipzig/Halle Airport on 4 August and later defused. The airport is a major international freight hub used for providing support to Ukraine.
