The Ukraine war, as it approaches its 31st month, is changing not only the geopolitical but also the economic landscape for Russia and Europe. The invasion caused a protracted war with high spiraling military costs for Moscow and realigned economies across Europe.As it keeps shoveling more and more money into its defense budget, inflation rises, and its domestic economy threatens to tip into recession. Europe has worked ceaselessly to free itself from dependence on Russian gas in the process of creating seismic shifts in global energy markets.

Where Have My Rubles Gone?

The spending by Russia on military forces has increased manifold since the beginning of the war.The ISW cited that Russia’s defense budget surged from 6.4 trillion rubles, or about $111 billion, in 2023 to 10.4 trillion rubles in 2024-a 62 percent increase in just one year. Moscow’s budget projections indicate that defense spending will continue to surge to 13.2 trillion rubles, or $142 billion, by 2025, equivalent to 6.2 percent of the nation’s GDP.These figures are more than 2.5 times greater than Ukraine’s defense budget, which underlines the disproportionately different resources of the two belligerents.