American analysts point out that next year Russian dictator Vladimir Putin intends to reduce defense spending and social benefits for the military. However, Moscow is expected to significantly increase funding for state propaganda.
Points of attention
- Internal security forces' budget will see an increase, with a rise in funding for police and special services in 2026.
- The Defenders of the Fatherland Fund, catering to veterans, will face a significant reduction in funding from 34.7 billion rubles to 13.9 billion rubles in 2026.
What is known about Putin's plans for 2026
The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) decided to carefully analyze the draft Russian federal budget for 2026–2028, which the government submitted to the State Duma on September 29.
What is important to understand is that next year the Kremlin intends to allocate about 17 trillion rubles ($183 billion) to the defense sector.
According to analysts, the total share of expenditures in the budget will decrease slightly — from 41% in 2025 to 38% in 2026.
In addition, it is noted that 12.9 trillion rubles ($155 billion) have been allocated for "national defense" in 2026, compared to 13.5 trillion in 2025.
Funding for internal security forces (police, special services), on the contrary, will increase to 3.9 trillion rubles ($47 billion) compared to 3.5 trillion ($47 billion) compared to 3.5 trillion ($42 billion) in 2025.
Analysts drew attention to the fact that the draft budget provides for significant cuts in social guarantees for military personnel and their families.
It is worth noting that compensation payments to the dead, injured, and their families will decrease from 78 billion rubles in 2025 to 58 billion rubles ($698 million).
Moreover, it is indicated that the funding of the Defenders of the Fatherland Fund, which takes care of veterans, will be reduced by more than half — from 34.7 billion rubles to 13.9 billion rubles ($167 million).
