In the first quarter, Russia's military spending on the war with Ukraine set a new record
Russia's military spending in the first quarter of 2026 reached a record high since the start of the full-scale war against Ukraine. During this period, the Kremlin spent 5.91 trillion rubles on the military and combat operations, equivalent to approximately $83.2 billion.
According to experts, this is 29.9% more than during the same period last year.
Thus, Russia continues to increase funding for the war, despite statements about its intentions to cut military spending.
Analysts calculated that, on average, the Russian budget spent about 2.7 billion rubles per hour on the war, or nearly $38 million. Daily expenditures amounted to approximately 65 billion rubles, equivalent to $916 million.
On average, about 2 trillion rubles, or $28.2 billion, was allocated to military needs each month. This amount exceeds the annual budget of Russia’s entire higher education system, which stands at 1.7 trillion rubles, as well as the budgets of all Russian regions except Moscow.
For the first time since the start of the full-scale war, the share of military spending in Russia’s federal budget reached 46%. This means that, in effect, every second ruble of government spending was directed toward military needs.
The significant increase in funding was driven primarily by classified budget items. In the first quarter, their volume grew from 3.4 trillion to 4.9 trillion rubles.
As a result, 38.2% of all Russian federal spending was classified. The total federal budget for this period amounted to 12.8 trillion rubles, or about $180.4 billion.
Russian authorities had previously planned to reduce military spending from 7.8% to 6.2% of gross domestic product, but actual figures indicate the opposite. In the first quarter of 2026, military spending reached 12% of GDP.
Experts predict that by the end of the year, this figure could remain at 9–10% of GDP, which will put additional pressure on public finances and increase the budget deficit.
According to analysts’ estimates, Russia’s total spending on the war against Ukraine since 2022 has already exceeded 53 trillion rubles, or $746.6 billion.
For comparison, this amount is equivalent to:
- 28 years of funding for the Russian healthcare system;
- 30 years of education spending;
- nearly 100 annual budgets of large Russian regions, such as the Krasnoyarsk Krai or the Sverdlovsk Oblast.
Despite economic difficulties and the growing strain on the budget, Russia continues to increase funding for the war, indicating a further militarization of government spending.
This is evidenced by calculations by Janis Klug, a research fellow at the German Institute for International Security Affairs.
Russia’s massive missile and drone attacks on Ukrainian cities demonstrate its weakness on the battlefield. Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kęstutis Budrys stated that the Kremlin is attempting to compensate for military failures by terrorizing the civilian population.
