Arms industry of Russia

Common card · No. 472148

The defense industry of Russia is a strategically important sector and a large employer in the Russian Federation. As of April 2025, it employs approximately 4.5 million people nationwide. It also accounts for 20% of all manufacturing jobs in Russia. Total defense spending in Russia reached 7.5% of GDP in 2023. President Vladimir Putin considered the Syrian civil war to be a good platform for advertisement of the capabilities of Russian weapons capable of boosting Russia's military sales. Russia accounted for 21% of global arms sales in 2014–18, that figure dropped to 11% in 2019–23 (SIPRI's statistics). In 2023, Russia was for the first time the third largest arms exporter, falling just behind France. Russian arms exports fell by 53% between 2014–18 and 2019–23. The number of countries purchasing major Russian arms dropped from 31 in 2019 to 12 in 2023. States in Asia and Oceania received 68% of total Russian arms exports in 2019–23, with India accounting for 34% and China for 21%. The...

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