Russia to boost state defense order to $92bn by 2015

PanARMENIAN.Net - Russia will gradually increase the annual amount of the state defense order to 2.8 trillion rubles (about $92 billion) by 2015, Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin said on Thursday, Dec 27, according to RIA Novosti.

“The state defense order will reach about 1.9 trillion rubles next year, about 2.2 trillion in 2014 and 2.8 trillion in 2015," Rogozin said in an interview with Rossiya 24 television.

Russia allocated about 908 billion rubles (about $30.7 bln) on state defense order spending in 2012.

Rogozin said the sharp increase in spending was necessary to boost R&D and put new weaponry into mass production.

The government has allocated 22 trillion rubles ($730 billion) on the comprehensive rearmament of Russia's Armed Forces which will see the share of modern weaponry reach 30% by 2015, and total 70% by 2020.

“The implementation of the state defense order is going as planned,” Rogozin said. “The situation with the signing and fulfillment of defense contracts has stabilized.”