Reply #17: Soaring gas and oil prices have greatly enriched Russia

[NickB79]

http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2007-02-12-russia-military_x.htm

"Russian defense budgets have been soaring since Putin came to power, buoyed by a rising tide of petroleum income, and are set to jump by 23% in 2007 to a post-Soviet high of $32.4 billion. Moscow does arms business with over 70 countries, including China, Iran, and Venezuela, and in 2006 exported $6 billion worth of arms."

snip

"Last week Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov unveiled a $189 billion rearmament program that will replace about half of Russia's current military equipment by 2015. Among the armed forces' acquisitions will be a completely revamped early-warning radar network, new intercontinental missiles, a fleet of supersonic Tu-160 strategic bombers, and 31 new warships, including aircraft carriers.

Last month Putin offered to partner with India to build a futuristic "fifth generation" fighter plane, which Russian designers say is already under development and could be flying as early as 2009. Only the U.S. has so far managed to field one of these new era combat jets — which have breakthrough capabilities of stealthiness, supersonic cruising, ultramaneuverability and over-the-horizon electronic visibility. And at $260 million per model, the new F/A-22 Raptor is by far the world's most expensive warplane."

Doesn't sound poorly-funded to me at all. So long as oil and natural gas prices remain high (and they will as China and India expand economically), Russia is in for massive profits over the next decade.