Despite predictions that the Russian military budget had reached its peak, the recently announced 2025/26 budget shows otherwise. To keep the war machine oiled and functioning, the Russian government is once again raising military spending substantially to levels not seen since the collapse of the Soviet Union. Some in the Russian elites believe that ongoing high demand in the military industrial complex will expedite economic growth. Several miscalculations by the West and a lack of massive military achievements from Ukraine have allowed the Russian economy to withstand the pressure of sanctions. But how sustainable is the current economic strategy, and how long can Putin fund his atrocious war while damaging crucial yet vulnerable economic sectors like healthcare, education, and science?

Read Kolyandr's piece on Western sanctions for Carnegie Politika:https://carnegieendowment.org/russia-eurasia/politika/2024/09/russia-eu-sanctions-trade?lang=en¢er=russia-eurasia

Host — Alex Gabuev

Guests — Alexandra Prokopenko, Alexander Kolyandr

Producer — Dmitrii Kuznetsov

Music by Liam Gordon