Russia’s defence spending to rise by 25% next year, the highest since the cold war

Defence and security will amount to 40% of government spending as Vladimir Putin continues war against Ukraine

Russia is set to increase its spending on defence by 25% in 2025, the highest since the cold war, as Vladimir Putin vows to continue his war efforts in Ukraine and further escalate his standoff with the west.

The latest planned increase in spending will take Russia's defence budget to a record 13.5tn rubles (109bn) in 2025, according to draft budget documents published on Monday on the parliament's website. That is about 3tn rubles more than was set aside for defence this year, which was the previous record.