Putin excludes 'guns before butter' policy

Russia has every opportunity to address strategic defenсe tasks without ruining the country's economy, President Vladimir Putin said in his Address to the Federal Assembly.

"You know, there is such a set expression: guns before butter. The defence of the country is, of course, the most important priority, but while solving strategic tasks in this area, we must not repeat the mistakes of the past — we must not destroy our own economy,” the President said.

According to him, Russia has every opportunity to ensure its own security and create conditions for the country's confident development.

"It is in this logic that we are acting and will continue to act,” Putin added.

Russia's key civilian industries not only reduced, but significantly increased their indicators in 2022, the president said. Thus, the volume of housing commissioning exceeded 100 million square meters for the first time. Agricultural production in 2022 showed double-digit growth rates, he added.

"Russian farmers collected a record-high harvest — over 150 million tons of grain, including more than 100 million tons of wheat,” the president said.

By the end of the agricultural year (before June 30, 2023), Russia will be able to bring the total volume of grain exports to 55-60 million tons, Putin said.

"Just 10-15 years ago it seemed like just a fairy tale, an impossible plan,” he said.