Military spending will account for 16% of overall federal budget expenditure. Under this year's budget, signed into law by the president at the end of last year, total spending is set at 5,463.5 billion rubles ($206 billion).
"The sum of 860 billion rubles includes, besides National Defense provisions, other sums under budget provisions for: Education; Culture, Cinematography and Media; Health and Sports; Housing and Communal Services; State Policy Issues; Inter-budgetary transfers; and Social Policy," Lyubov Kudelina, the head of ministry's department for economy and finances, said.
She said strengthening the country's defense capability remained a national policy priority this year, and that most of the funds under the National Defense provision will be spent on financial and technical maintenance of the armed forces, procurement and repairs of military hardware, payments for scientific and research work, and construction.
About 10% of National Defense spending has been allocated to "other federal executive bodies dealing with issues of national defense," Kudelina said.
She said this year spending on the procurement of new military hardware will total over 300 billion rubles ($11.3 billion), 20% higher than in 2006.
Kudelina also said that 24 billion rubles ($904.64 million) will be allocated for combat training, to allow for about 200 combat training events to be held, including over 20 major exercises.
