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In Thursday's State of the Union address, president putin He promised a plan to improve Russia's living standards.
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This includes funding for fertility, infrastructure and hospital improvement programs.
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But there's at least one big problem. That means the money isn't in your budget.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has promised to raise the living standards of his countrymen with a big new plan over the next six years.
But there's at least one big problem. That's because his promise isn't included in the budget.
President Putin made the comment during his annual State of the Union address on Thursday. He was speaking two weeks before Russia's presidential election, in which he is expected to win against three opponents. The term of office of the Russian president is six years.
According to Bloomberg, analysts estimate that Putin's promise could cost Russia $130 billion more than the current budget.
According to Reuters, the biggest investments Putin has promised include 4.5 trillion rubles ($49 billion) to upgrade public infrastructure and 1 trillion rubles to build and upgrade existing hospitals.
There is also a 75 billion ruble plan to boost birth rates and life expectancy. President Putin last month called on Russians to have more babies “in order to survive as a nation.”
“We need continued efforts to improve the quality of life for families with children,” Putin said, according to Reuters.
It is unclear where the additional budget will come from. On Friday, President Putin proposed changes to the tax system aimed at increasing taxes from high-income individuals and businesses, according to the Moscow Times.
Russia's economy appears to have remained resilient despite sweeping sanctions from the West. The war in Ukraine is now in its third year.
Analysts attribute Russia's resilience to wartime spending, state subsidies, and a large, globally integrated economy.
Still, Russia has been running a budget deficit for two years since the invasion of Ukraine.
Dmitry Porevoy, investment director at London-based Astra Asset Management, told Bloomberg that as long as the economy does not deteriorate, Russia can afford to make additional spending as promised by President Vladimir Putin.
“At first glance, it is not out of reach, but if the economic situation is worse than the authorities expected, we will have to look for additional sources of funding,” Poelvoy told the paper.
Read the original article on Business Insider
