Russia plans 27% hike in military spending for 2027: 17.1 trillion rubles, highest level since the war began

Russian government documents seen by the Reuters news agency on Monday (September 28, 2026) show the Kremlin plans to spend 17.1 trillion rubles — about $202.6 billion — on defense in 2027, roughly 27% more than the initially budgeted 13.5 trillion and the highest figure since the war in Ukraine began in 2022.

According to the documents Reuters says it has seen, total defense spending is expected to reach 50 trillion rubles over the next three years. For 2026, the official plan envisages 12.1 trillion rubles, but the real figure remains classified and will not be made public; moreover, part of military spending may also be hidden in other budget chapters.

The plan comes as Russian public finances are under growing pressure. The budget deficit for 2026 was raised to 3.2% of GDP from 1.6% previously, while budget spending grows 13.2% to 48.6 trillion rubles — equal to 20.9% of GDP.

The draft budget is expected to reach parliament by October 1, and the government is also preparing new tax hikes for 2027, including an extraordinary tax on the metals and mining sector expected to bring in about 200 billion rubles a year.

At the same time, net state borrowing in 2026 rises 26% to 5 trillion rubles, while 459 billion rubles — about 11% of the liquid part — will be taken from the National Wealth Fund. The estimate of oil and gas revenues for 2026 was cut to 7.6 trillion rubles from 8.9 trillion; state debt is expected to reach 21.7% of GDP in 2027 from 19.9% previously — above the 20% threshold the authorities themselves see as safe. Total borrowing in 2027 rises 43% to 7.7 trillion rubles.