Senior Russian officials have told President Putin that war spending in Ukraine
has exceeded Russia’s capacity, people familiar with the matter said, the
The clearest sign yet of serious internal rifts in Moscow since the conflict began.
Officials from the finance ministry and the central bank warned the Kremlin that
currently projected defense spending could sharply widen the government budget
deficit and trigger severe consequences. They have grown increasingly worried
about the economy and public finances in recent months and have proposed cutting
defense expenditures. The defense ministry’s senior officers and some Kremlin
officials, however, insist on maintaining military spending to achieve Putin’s
war objectives.
