Putin’s security spending is climbing amid growing problems

President Vladimir Putin has increased the amount of money the Kremlin is spending on his personal security as the trials and tribulations of nearly a year and a half of full-scale war have shown that even Russia’s most important political figure is under threat. 

The Russian Foreign Ministry released data showing that taxpayers spent fifteen billion rubles—which is equivalent to roughly $185 million dollars—between January and May ensuring the safety of Putin and his staff according to a report from The Moscow Times. 

If the figures presented prove to be true, The Moscow Times said it would mean spending on Putin’s security had used up 77% of the country’s annual budget normally allocated for the Russian President and his staff's safety and security in just five months.

The Moscow Times also pointed out that the cost of Putin’s safety had risen 15% over the costs associated with the President’s protection during the same time period in the previous year. But how and why has spending on Putin’s protection gotten so high? 

Explaining how spending on Putin and his staff got so high fairly is easily, Russia has been embroiled in a war that is increasingly spilling over into its borders—and it doesn’t take a big stretch of the imagination to assume vital staff members need more protection. 

There has been a string of assassinations inside of Russia that targeted several pro-Kremlin propagandists like Vladlen Tatarsky and  Zakhar Prilepen, and Ukraine’s Head of the Main Intelligence Directorate has admitted to targeting people in Russia. 

“We’ve already successfully targeted quite a few people,” Major General Kyrylo Budanov told the host of the Ukrainian YouTube channel Rizni Lyudi in a May interview. “There have been well-publicized cases everyone knows about, thanks to the media coverage.” 

Budanov explained that he considered Putin to be a legitimate target but added Ukraine had not made any attempts to assassinate him according to reporting from The Times. 

However, Putin’s staff might not be so lucky since Budanov said his agents in Russia were targeting anyone who committed war crimes against Ukraine. “These cases have happened and will continue,” the Head of the Main Intelligence Directorate remarked.

“Such people will receive a well-deserved punishment, and the appropriate punishment can only be liquidation and I will implement it,” Budanvo continued. 

Newsweek also noted spending on security in Russia has been on the rise ever since the Kremlin was hit with a drone strike on May 3rd, showing even the most important buildings in Moscow were not safe from the consequences of the Putin's full-scale invasion. 

At least eight drones caused minor damage in Moscow during the first drone attack that had reached the city according to Newsweek, but Ukrainian officials denied that they had anything to do with the strikes.

“Of course, everything will be strengthened. And so everything is already strengthened,” Russian Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov said in reference to the security around the Kremlin and Putin according to reporting from The Moscow Times translated by Google. 

Putin is also worried about the possibility of being arrested after a warrant was issued by the International Criminal Court according to the independent Russian news outlet Verstka, which noted that Putin hasn’t left Russia since the issuing of the warrant.

How this would factor into the cost of the Russian President and his staff’s security costs is unknown but it is possible some measures have been put in place to protect Putin and his staff members from arrest while abroad if they weren't covered by diplomatic immunity. 

The Moscow Times noted that based on the country’s budgetary laws for the next three years, only 59.7 billion rubles—or roughly 739 million dollars—had been allocated for the cost of expenses of President Putin’s “functioning” based on a Google translation.