SOCHI. Oct 24 (Interfax) - Russia is spending less than 3% of its GDP on defense, and the defense budget is reducing, President Vladimir Putin said in comments on the speech of the Chad president at the Russia-Africa summit.
Putin said he was surprised to hear that many African countries were spending from 18% to 32% of their GDP on security, which was an unbearable load.
"Please note, this is not a secret and we are proud that Russia has created quite an effective security system and, more importantly, an effective modern army. There are still many things to be done, but it is already quite effective," Putin said.
"At the same time, we spend less than 3% [of the GDP] on the needs of the Defense Ministry, and our expenses are declining," he said.