NATO Deputy Assistant Secretary General for Political Affairs James Appathurai refuted media reports suggesting that the Russian government spends 6% of its GDP on military needs. According to him, this figure is significantly higher. Appathurai made these remarks during a speech at the European Policy Centre.
Russia Allocates 30% of GDP to Defense and Security
“I believe that 6% is a very low estimate. That’s what they claim. But it looks more like 30% of the Russian economy is spent on defense and security,” said Appathurai.
He urged awareness that Russia is governed by “a well-armed, aggressive, somewhat paranoid, and expansionist government led by a single person for at least a decade.” He called on NATO countries to do more to deter Russia.
Specifically, he pointed out that NATO has “an economy ten times larger than Russia’s,” as well as “highly effective modern forces that can operate together.” The senior Alliance official expects a series of decisions at the NATO summit aimed at strengthening new defense plans.
Additionally, he mentioned that many hundreds of thousands of Alliance troops would be relocated in the shortest possible time. Furthermore, NATO does not believe that Russia is ready for a war with the Alliance, despite constant statements to the contrary.
“Russia talks a lot about NATO but makes no moves to challenge NATO. And they do not want to fight NATO because they know they would lose,” he added.
Previously, it was noted that Russia channels 40% of its state budget into government orders. Overall, the aggressor country directed approximately 7-8% of its GDP towards military production. However, the senior official has now revealed a different figure.
