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 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 1 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 showed.
It …read more
Source: Voice of America
