Posted at 12:00 a.m.
61.7 billion
PHOTO REUTERS
Russian army armored vehicle patrolling a street in Armyansk, northern Crimea, on Thursday
In 2020, Russia’s military spending exceeded Ukraine’s by ten times, according to a study by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). Russia devoted 61.7 billion in military expenditure against 5.9 billion in its Ukrainian neighbor. In terms of gross domestic product (GDP), the figures are roughly equivalent, at just over 4%.
The Russian army among the world powers
PHOTO ANATOLII STEPANOV, FRANCE-PRESSE AGENCY
Ukrainian soldiers prepare to repel an attack in the Lugansk region held by pro-Russian separatists on Thursday.
Military spending is only a fraction, albeit the largest, of countries’ national defense budgets. According to Global Firepower, Russia’s national defense budget (which includes all types of expenditures, including pension funds), amounts to US$154 billion. He comes at 3and rank behind China (250 billion) and the United States (770 billion). Ukraine is at 20and rank with a budget of 11.9 billion.
Aging Ukrainian military equipment
PHOTO SERGEI GRITS, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Damaged speed cameras at a military installation outside Mariupol, Ukraine, following Russian shelling on Thursday
Essentially local, Russia’s military equipment is much more varied than that of Ukraine. A few years ago, Russia undertook a modernization of it, for example with T-14 Armata tanks and 59N6-TE radars capable of detecting hypersonic targets. According to the CIA’s World Factbook, Ukrainian equipment is aging. Improvements in recent years are partly attributable to $14 billion in NATO aid.
Since 2014, aid to Ukraine
PHOTO DANIEL LEAL, FRANCE-PRESSE AGENCY
Ukrainian soldiers standing guard north of Kiev on Thursday
This NATO aid was set up following the invasion of Crimea, the southern peninsula of Ukraine, by Russia in February and March 2014. Since 2014, American military aid to Ukraine would have reached 2.5 billion. On the Global Affairs Canada website, we read that since 2014, Canada has provided more than $890 million in “multifaceted aid” to Ukraine. “Support to Ukraine’s security sector and defense reform remains a key area of our collaboration,” it says.
190,000
PHOTO AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
Russian military vehicles on the move in the Rostov region of southern Russia on Thursday
In general, it is estimated that the Russian army has between 850,000 and 900,000 active fighters, while there are around 200,000 among the Ukrainians. Within days of the Russian invasion, around 190,000 Russian troops were on the border with Ukraine, unheard of in Europe since the end of World War II. Tuesday 1er February, Ukraine announced a professionalization of the army and an increase in manpower of 100,000 people over three years.
12,420 Russian tanks against 2,596 Ukrainians
PHOTO ARCHIVES ASSOCIATED PRESS
Russian tank during military exercises in the Saint Petersburg region on February 14
A few figures, taken from the Global Firepower website, speak eloquently of the imbalance of forces present. 12,420 Russian tanks against 2,596 Ukrainians, 14,000 artillery pieces against just over 3,000, 544 attack helicopters against only 34 for the Ukrainians. On the water, Russian domination is total. According to Defense News, the Russians grabbed 75% of the Ukrainian fleet following the invasion of Crimea. Ukraine also lost its naval base in Sevastopol. We had to rebuild from scratch.