Russia’s military budget may shrink 10 percent in 2015 – Rostec

By Stanley Carvalho ABU DHABI (Reuters) – Russia’s military budget may shrink by around 10 percent in 2015, the chief executive of state-owned defense conglomerate Rostec said on Monday. The country’s defense spending will be watched closely this year, mainly in view of events in Ukraine, with Western nations accusing Moscow of providing weapons and soldiers to a separatist revolt in the country’s east. Russia denies it has troops in eastern Ukraine. Last month, Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said there should be a 10 percent cut across all sectors of government spending except for defense, which was considered ring-fenced by President Vladimir Putin.