By Country / Russia
Russia To Increase Defense Spending By 20 Percent
August 01, 2005
1 August 2005 (RFE/RL) -- Russia will increase defense spending by at least 15 to 20 percent next year.
Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov made the announcement today during a visit to the Far Eastern city of Khabarovsk.
President Vladimir Putin has repeated the need to modernize Russia's military, including its nuclear weapons.
(dpa)