MOSCOW
\nPresident Vladimir Putin on Friday cited positive data points to laud Russia\u2019s economic health and said surging defence spending was needed to boost national security, as Moscow grapples with the cost of fighting in Ukraine.
\nPutin, speaking at the plenary session of Russia\u2019s flagship St Petersburg International Economic Forum, said the public finances were generally balanced, putting the $42-billion budget deficit so far this year largely down to bringing forward some planned expenditures.
\nAnalysts and data, however, suggest that slumping energy revenues and soaring military spending have played a key role.
\n\u201cNaturally, additional funds were needed to strengthen defence and security, to purchase weapons,\u201d Putin said, without mentioning Ukraine specifically. \u201cWe were forced to do this to protect our country\u2019s sovereignty.
\n\u201cI should say that on the whole this justifies itself from an economic point of view,\u201d Putin added.
\nPutin used data to make his argument for Russia\u2019s positive economic prospects, forecasting gross domestic product (GDP) growth of up to 2% this year, citing record low unemployment and low inflation relative to last year\u2019s double-digit acceleration.
\nThat would still leave GDP smaller than at the end of 2021, after last year\u2019s contraction of 2.1%. The International Monetary Fund forecasts 2023 growth of 0.7%, and expects global isolation and lower energy revenues to dampen Russia\u2019s prospects for years to come.
\nWith hundreds of thousands of working age men conscripted last year and hundreds of thousands more fleeing the country to avoid mobilisation, unemployment is at a record low 3.3%. The central bank has repeatedly warned that a labour shortage is exacerbating inflationary risks, and analysts have named it one of the most significant drags on Russia\u2019s economic progress.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
MOSCOW President Vladimir Putin on Friday cited positive data points to laud Russia\u2019s economic health and said surging defence spending was needed to boost national security, as Moscow grapples with the cost of fighting in Ukraine. Putin, speaking at the plenary session of Russia\u2019s flagship St Petersburg International Economic Forum, said the public finances were […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":338228,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-338202","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n