Janis Kluge, a German economist who analyzes data from the Russian Ministry of Finance, calculated that military expenditures in the federal budget reached 11.9 trillion rubles [$153 billion] between January and September 2025, marking a 30 percent increase from the same period in 2024. Spending surged 95 percent from 2023, 173 percent from 2022, and 295 percent—nearly a fourfold rise—from prewar levels of 2021. While the planned 2025 budget allocated 13.2 trillion rubles [$171 billion] for military purposes, the government had exhausted 90 percent of these funds by September. The 2026 budget earmarks 12.9 trillion rubles [$167 billion], or nearly 30 percent of total spending, for "national defense." Kluge estimates that since the start...
Putin has signed a decree calling up reservists to undergo military training in 2026. The document comes into effect on the day of its publication. The organization of the training is the responsibility of the Russian government and regional authorities. Based on the decree, the Ministry of Defense prepares a directive and sends it to regional draft offices, which then issue draft notices to reservists. Under Russian law, such training cannot exceed two consecutive months. Putin signs a similar document every year, and traditionally some provisions are classified under the designation "for official use." In particular, the number of reservists to be called up for training has not been disclosed. Additionally, as suggested by the...
In Russia’s Republic of Bashkortostan, authorities have lowered bonuses for signing contracts with the Ministry of Defense from 1 million to 500,000 rubles [$13,000 to $6,500], even though Governor Radiy Khabirov had extended the higher rate—originally set in June—through the end of the year just one week ago. While officials published the new decree on Dec. 4, it applies retroactively to all contracts signed since Dec. 1, preserving the previous amount only for those who signed by Nov. 30. The order also slashes Ufa's additional municipal bonus for contract soldiers from 600,000 to 100,000 rubles [$7,800 to $1,300], meaning that with the federal component of 400,000 rubles [$5,200], a new recruit will now receive 900,000 rubles...
The State Duma [lower house of Russia’s Federal Assembly] approved a bill in second and third readings in a single session that would grant war participants the right to obtain a second vocational education tuition-free in a new field. Lawmakers are also considering another bill to provide a similar benefit to surviving spouses of service members. Meanwhile, universities and trade schools already allocate 10 percent of all state-funded places to participants in the war against Ukraine.
The Russian Ministry of Labor announced that the recent legislative changes extending a social program to former participants in the war against Ukraine will take effect on Jan. 1, 2026. Unemployed veterans and those seeking work will be able to sign a one-time social contract to launch a business and receive a grant of up to 350,000 rubles [$4,500] and up to 30,000 rubles [$390] for a three-month training course. Unlike other applicants, these former service members will not need to show that their income falls below the subsistence minimum. Instead, they will need to hold war participant status, be discharged from service, register with the employment agency, and secure a recommendation from the Defenders of the Fatherland Fund.
In Moscow, Danil Zimin, an activist from the Yabloko party [Russia's social-liberal political party], has been detained and conscripted into the army within one day. The young man had previously been detained on Oct. 31 but was released that same day after asserting his right to alternative civilian service. Although a court of first instance upheld the draft office’s refusal to grant him this right, Zimin filed an appeal, so the verdict has not yet taken effect. On the morning of Nov. 28, police detained Zimin once more. He was taken to a draft office and fined for failing to report after receiving a draft notice. Then, he was sent to the Unified Military Recruitment Center on Yablochkova Street, and later, to the military collection...
A draft set of amendments has been published that would revise the rules for granting draft deferrals to employees of accredited IT companies. Under the proposal, a draft deferral would be available to employees with at least 11 months of work experience during the year preceding their call-up and who hold a university degree in one of the approved fields, as well as to recent graduates who sign an employment contract within one year of receiving their diploma. The draft also clarifies the procedure for submitting information to MinTsifry [the Ministry of Digital Development, Communications and Mass Media of Russia]. Under the proposed rules, employees would be able to upload their own data, which companies would then verify and submit...
The Russian government has introduced a bill in the State Duma [lower house of the Federal Assembly] that would establish special sentencing procedures for foreigner nationals and stateless persons who serve under contract and take part in combat with the Russian Armed Forces. This bill would effectively prohibit the extradition of such individuals, replacing it with mandatory labor or fines ranging from 1,000 to 50,000 rubles [$13-$640].
In the Kuedinsky district of the Perm region, the payment for recruiting a contract soldier was raised from the 200,000 rubles [$2,520] introduced on Nov. 1 of this year to 250,000 rubles [$3,150] for each person who signs a contract. The bonus applies if the contract is signed by a resident of another region, a foreign national or a stateless person at recruitment centers or draft offices in the Chernushinsky and Kuedinsky districts.
On Nov. 20, the State Duma [lower house of Russia’s Federal Assembly] approved a bill in its first reading that would authorize employees of the Central Bank and the Russian Association of Cash Collection to combat Ukrainian drones. The proposed legislation would grant bank personnel and cash transit guards the right to suppress attacks and prevent impending strikes involving aerial, ground, underwater, surface and other automated unmanned systems on guarded facilities within Moscow-controlled territory. Under the new rules, the Central Bank and the collection association would independently determine the protocols for neutralizing drones to defend their properties and designate the specific personnel authorized to make those decisions.