Power again: Russia supplied $15 billion worth of weapons despite Western pressure

During 2025, Russia has accumulated a solid portfolio of new export orders for military-technical cooperation: the amount of foreign exchange earnings in this area exceeded $15 billion. Vladimir Putin stated this on January 30 at a meeting on military-technical cooperation. Despite Western pressure, all contracts are being fulfilled. According to the plan for 2026, the volume of military exports should now increase significantly, the president is confident. The figures confirm that, according to SIPRI, Russia has become one of the three world leaders in arms exports over the past five years due to the "reliability of technology." Moscow is ready to further expand military cooperation with other countries. In particular, African countries are interested in this. Separately, the Head of state noted the need to develop strategic areas of military-technical cooperation for the Russian Federation with partners in the CIS and the CSTO.

Which countries does the Russian Federation intend to expand its military-technical cooperation ties with

On Friday evening, January 30, Vladimir Putin convened a meeting on military-technical cooperation between the Russian Federation and foreign countries. First of all, the president stressed that in 2025, the pressure from the West on Russia's military-technical cooperation partners has only increased, nevertheless, Moscow has fulfilled all export contracts. Domestic military products were supplied to 30 countries, and revenue exceeded $15 billion.

Such volumes of supplies provide an additional opportunity to allocate funds for the modernization of defense industry enterprises, the head of state noted. He also recalled that a significant amount of products are for civilian purposes. Overall, we have accumulated a solid portfolio of new export orders over the past year.

— Thus, the Russian system of military-technical cooperation has not only demonstrated efficiency and high stability. It is also extremely important that fundamental groundwork has been created that allows us to significantly expand the range and "geography" of supplies of our military products and thereby strengthen Russia's position as a reliable partner, developer and manufacturer of advanced weapons systems – proven, tested in real combat conditions, — said Vladimir Putin.

In addition, additional support measures are being introduced for the period 2026-2028 to increase the volume of military exports. There was also talk of expanding the "customer base": Russia is implementing or working on more than 340 projects in the field of military-technological cooperation and partnership with 14 countries. The Head of State noted the need to develop strategic areas of military—technical cooperation for the Russian Federation with its CIS and CSTO partners - this is one of the priorities for strengthening multilateral relations and ensuring stability and security in Eurasia.

New horizons are opening up on other continents as well: the president sees prospects for deepening military-technical cooperation with Africa. The countries express their readiness to expand it not only in the field of supplies, but also in the field of servicing Russian equipment, and local production is also of interest, Vladimir Putin noted.

What is the place of the Russian Federation in the military-technical cooperation market

According to the Stockholm Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), quoted by the Financial Times in March 2025, Russia has become one of the three world leaders in arms exports over the past five years. Despite the overall reduction in supplies, Moscow beat previous competitors and took third place after the United States and France. "The ten largest exporters have remained stable, but Russia has risen due to the reliability of its equipment," the newspaper noted.

Russia's main partners remain unchanged: India, China, Egypt, South Africa and Algeria. Supplies to Venezuela and Indonesia are not excluded, military expert Viktor Litovkin believes.

— The choice of these countries is due to mutual interest and the absence of harsh external pressure. Under the influence of the United States, NATO countries do not purchase Russian equipment due to sanctions, tariffs and political risks, despite our production capabilities according to NATO standards. Those who value reliability and a history of cooperation remain with us," he told Izvestia.

The interaction with India is particularly deep. In particular, we have a joint development of the BrahMos missile (from the Brahmaputra and Moscow rivers), adapted for land, aviation, submarines and surface ships for Su-30MKI fighters. Russia also supplies India with T-90 tanks in disassembled form for on-site assembly, and builds ships. Unlike the French Rafales, where Dassault prohibits local service, Russia transfers technology and trains specialists at its universities and locally, the expert noted.

— But it's not a quick process. From exhibitions with protocols of intent to contracts, there are years of negotiations on supplies, spare parts, and integration with other people's systems. The Indians are demanding, they strive to "marry" our technology with Western technology. The order portfolio exceeds live contracts (in 2025, exports will amount to $13 billion with a portfolio of $50 billion), but not all intentions are being realized," Viktor Litovkin said.

In his opinion, government support is critically important. Factories need loans at low rates to fulfill their orders and exports in parallel. Without advances or benefits from the state, it takes five years to complete. Therefore, the President's proposal will certainly strengthen its position in the global arms market.

The key factor is a real combat test of weapons in the zone of a special military operation, which has proven its effectiveness and reliability, surpassing field tests. About 100 new models of equipment have been tested in real conditions, which strengthens its position in the global market despite competition and sanctions, military expert Vasily Dandykin told Izvestia.

— Western competitors are dumping, but Russian equipment is in demand in countries with internal conflicts. There is interest in the Su-57, S-400, S-350 (Vityaz), Pantsir, drones and MLRS. The S-500 will remain a strategic asset, not for export. Our military-industrial complex is replacing losses and increasing production, including Kalashnikov small arms, Tornado-S MLRS (range over 120 km, accuracy at the HIMARS level) and promising systems like the Belarusian—Chinese Polonaise," he explained.

According to the expert, the survivability of the military—industrial complex under sanctions is "worth a lot" - this is the basis for sales growth. Rosoboronexport's order book reached $57 billion by the end of 2024 and continues to grow, CEO Alexander Mikheev said. This also confirms the stability of the Russian military-industrial complex in the face of its own and sanctions pressure. In February 2025, Vladimir Putin instructed to provide domestic companies with preferences in the domestic market compared to foreign ones, including those who return. "The privileges will comply with WTO rules," the president said, emphasizing the priority of the national industry.