MOSCOW, Aug. 6 (UPI) -- While Russia's 2011-2013 defense budget contains increases, Gen. Oleg Frolov has warned that these will be insufficient for the period up to 2020.
Frolov, who is acting head of armaments for the Russian Federation Ministry of Defense, made his observations in the Duma, Voenno-Promyshlennii Kurier reported on Thursday.
Frolov told the Duma that while the 2011-2020 state arms program, the most expensive in recent Russian history, will reach expenditures of $436.4 billion, the Ministry of Defense believes that to fulfill its missions the actual amount need for the period is actually $940 billion to $1.2 trillion over the next decade.
According to Frolov, the Ministry of Defense's highest priorities during the next decade will be upgrading Russia's strategic triad together with the Air Force and Air Defense Forces. Accordingly, the army and navy during the next 10 years will have a lower priority, with ground and naval forces maintaining existing equipment in combat-ready condition while receiving with minimal deliveries of new equipment.
Under the Ministry of Defense priorities, Russia's Strategic Nuclear Forces will be re-equipped, with Strategic Missile Troops receiving the Topol-M and Yars complexes along with the possible addition of a new silo-based heavy missile whose development was announced last year. The aerial component of the nuclear triad will continue to deploy Tu-95MS and Tu-160 bombers as development continues on the Advanced Aviation Complex for Frontline Aviation. Over the course of the next decade the Naval Strategic Nuclear Forces are to be supplemented with eight Project 955 strategic SLBM submarines as further tests of the Bulava missile upgrade for them continue.
The Ministry of Defense's budget also includes funding for the period 2011-2020 to purchase 350 new combat aircraft for the Russian Air Force between 2011 and 2020 along with 400 new or upgraded helicopters by 2015, with the transport aviation fleet also being upgraded.
Under the proposed budget the Russian air force's Air Defense Troops will continue to receive Pantsir S-400 short range air defense missile systems while following final development S-500 and Vityaz will also be transferred to Air Defense Troops.
If the proposed budget is implemented then the Russian Navy over the next decade without an increase in appropriations will receive at most 12-15 corvette-frigate class surface ships, six-eight multirole nuclear and diesel submarines and an indeterminate number of combat vessels of other classes along with the possibility of four universal Mistral-type amphibious assault ships.
Mirroring trends worldwide, the reduction of Russian ground forces is a given in the new budget as few officers believe that Russia can expect a large-scale ground war on its borders.
