Leonid Brezhnev

Putin’s Wartime Budget Mirrors Brezhnev’s Costly Drift

Russia is preparing a new three-year budget that sharply raises military spending while trimming social programs, underscoring President Vladimir Putin’s determination to sustain the war in Ukraine despite mounting fiscal strain. The shift has drawn comparisons to the late Soviet era, when heavy defense outlays helped hollow out the economy and deepen long-term stagnation.