Russia Wants to Boost Defence Spending After KurskRussian Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin said on Thursday defence and security spending would be among the areas to benefit from any windfalls in next year's budget, Itar-Tass news agency said.Kudrin made the pledge after a meeting with President Vladimir Putin that was overshadowed by the Kursk submarine disaster. The sinking of the vessel and deaths of its 118 crew members highlighted the dismal state of Russia's navy. Kudrin and Putin discussed an outline of the 2001 budget. Tass quoted Kudrin as saying after the meeting that any windfalls, such as increased revenues from improved tax collection, would be partially spent on boosting defence and security spending. He did not give any figures. Putin, who was severely criticised for his hands-off approach at the start of the submarine crisis, said in an emotional television interview on Thursday that more money for the military would be forthcoming. Russia was forced to seek foreign help in its failed attempt to save the Kursk's crew after it became clear its North Sea fleet did not have deep-sea diving teams with proper training and equipment. Russia's once mighty military has struggled financially since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 and the end of the Cold War. |
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