By IANS/RIA Novosti,
Moscow : Russia has plans to raise its annual defence spending by 59 percent to almost three trillion rubles ($97 billion) in 2015, up from about 1.88 trillion rubles in 2012, the state Duma’s defense committee has revealed.
“Targeted national defense spending as a percentage of GDP will amount to 3.2 percent in 2013, 3.4 percent in 2014 and 3.7 percent in 2015,” said Duma’s defense committee chairman Vladimir Komoedov in the committee’s draft budget for 2013-2015.
The draft budget will come up for a first reading in the Duma Friday.
The proposals provide financing to “re-equip units with new weapon systems, military and specialty equipment and provide housing and social safeguards for service members” among other issues, Komoedov said.