Russia Aims to Retain Position as World’s Second-Largest Arms Exporter

Russia aims to remain the world’s second-largest arms exporter, according to Oleg Yevtushenko, Executive Director of the Rostec state corporation.

Yevtushenko stated that Rostec’s newly approved development strategy, extending through 2036, maintains this goal despite global challenges and competition from other countries, The Caspian Post reports, citing Russian media.

"This year, Rostec approved its new development strategy through 2036. The difficult situation in the world and pressure from our main foreign competitors cannot change our strategic goal, which is to preserve second place in the global rankings of weapons-exporting countries until 2030 and through 2036," he pointed out.

According to Yevtushenko, with countries such as France and South Korea seeking to ramp up their exports, it won’t be easy to achieve that goal, but it’s possible. In this regard, he highlighted the role of Russia’s Rosoboronexport state arms exporter, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary on Tuesday. Over these years, Russia’s weapons exports rose five-fold, and work continues at a high pace.

Rostec CEO Sergey Chemezov also congratulated the company on its anniversary, noting that "over the past 25 years, Rosoboronexport has become one of the leaders of the global arms market, significantly expanding its order portfolio and volume of supplies." "The company has signed over 30,000 contracts with its partners, exporting goods worth over $230 billion to more than 120 countries," Chemezov added.