President Putin signs off record Russian defence spending Budget for 2025

Russian President Vladimir Putin approved budget plans, raising 2025 military spending to record levels as Moscow seeks to prevail in the war in Ukraine.Around 32.5% of the budget posted on a government website Sunday has been allocated for national defense, amounting to 13.5 trillion rubles (over $145 billion), up from a reported 28.3% this year.Lawmakers in both houses of the Russian parliament, the State Duma and Federation Council had already approved the plans in the past 10 days.Russia's war on Ukraine, which started in Feb. 2022, is Europe's biggest conflict since World War II and has drained the resources of both sides.Kyiv has been getting billions of dollars in help from its Western allies, but Russia's forces are bigger and better equipped, and in recent months the Russian army has gradually been pushing Ukrainian troops backward in eastern areas.On the ground in Ukraine, three people died in the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson when a Russian drone struck a mini