At his own expense: Putin spoke about the successes of the defense industry and the new look of the Russian army

The Russian military-industrial complex is operating stably, providing the necessary equipment to the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, including units involved in its military operations. This was stated by Vladimir Putin on December 26 at a meeting on state programs for armament and defense industry development. The production of highly demanded military equipment has increased many times since 2022: armored weapons — 2.2 times, lightly armored — 3.7 times, aircraft — 4.6 times, weapons of destruction and ammunition — more than 22 times. The year 2026 will continue this trend, consolidating the status of the Russian defense industry as one of the most efficient in the world, experts believe.

The results of the defense industry in 2025

On December 26, Vladimir Putin held a meeting on the main parameters of the draft state armament program for 2027-2036 and the state defense industry development program. First of all, the President thanked the staff of the defense organizations for their hard work.

"Our defense industry enterprises, working in a stable mode, supply the troops with all the necessary weapons and equipment, both in the interests of the units involved in a special military operation and for the Armed Forces as a whole," he said.

Then we moved on to discussing the main issues on the agenda. In the open part of the meeting, Vladimir Putin set the task of agreeing at the meeting on the main indicators of the state armament program for 2027-2036, as well as the state defense industry development program.

The President drew attention to the fact that the nature, forms, and methods of warfare are constantly changing during the military operation. And the experience gained by the troops in such conditions is used in shaping the new look of both the army and the military-industrial complex. The new state armament program should continue to work in this direction.

For this purpose, a set of measures has already been developed to consistently increase high-tech industries with their maximum automation, increase labor productivity and reduce production costs. The development of the testing and testing grounds, the introduction of artificial intelligence technologies, and the development of advanced materials will also continue.

— All this is designed not only to ensure and consolidate the existing advantage of our weapons and equipment, but also to become the engine of innovative development for the entire industry. There are already significant results in these areas. But, of course, as it always happens, there is a lot of work ahead," Vladimir Putin stressed.

In a short time, the country was able to strengthen the material and technical base of defense industry enterprises and increase the capacity to produce the necessary types of weapons along the entire cooperative chain. As a result, compared with 2022, the production of products and products in high demand in the course of ITS activities increased many times in 2025.

— I can say for reference (it is such a curious one) that the production of armored weapons has increased 2.2 times, light armored vehicles (infantry fighting vehicles, armored personnel carriers) — 3.7 times, military aviation equipment — 4.6 times, automotive — 5.7 times, rocket artillery weapons — 9.6 times, communications and electronic warfare equipment — 12.5 times, personal protective equipment — almost 18 times, weapons of destruction and ammunition — more than 22 times," the president said.

Scaling up the state defense order

The unprecedented growth in production rates for almost all key nomenclatures of weapons and military equipment in 2024-2025 shows that the defense industry has not only adapted to new challenges, but has also switched to a multi-scale production mode, military expert Dmitry Kornev emphasized.

According to his estimates, the situation in the aircraft industry, one of the most resource—intensive and expensive industries, is most indicative. The production of the main Su-35S multirole fighters and Su-34 front-line bombers has increased several times. Special attention is now being paid to the fifth-generation Su–57 fighter: compared to 2022, its production volume has increased at least 1.5-2 times. This indicates a deep optimization of production chains at aircraft factories in Komsomolsk-on-Amur and Novosibirsk.

— In the segment of armored vehicles, growth is proceeding in two directions. The first is the new production: the production of T—90M "Breakthrough" tanks has increased many times. The second is a deep modernization: the rate of renewal of the tank fleet, in particular, the T-72 of the latest modifications, has increased several times, which makes it possible to quickly saturate the troops with proven, but adapted to modern combat vehicles. A similar pattern is observed in the BMP-3 segment and new modifications of armored vehicles," Dmitry Kornev noted.

Separately, the expert noted the successes in the field of self-propelled artillery. Wheeled howitzers such as the Malva and Hyacinth-K, which were previously produced individually, are now being mass-produced. This qualitatively changes the mobility of artillery formations.

— A real breakthrough has occurred in the field of unmanned aircraft. The production of long-range drones, including the Geranium family, has increased significantly. We see the evolution of these systems: new, "smart" modifications are emerging, with increased protection from interference and selectivity, which seriously complicates their interception. At the same time, the defense industry is demonstrating consistently high rates of production of cruise and ballistic missiles for Iskander complexes, as well as projectiles for multiple launch rocket systems," Kornev explained.

The technological base and human resource allowed us to reach a plateau of high productivity. Given the current inertia of development and the groundwork that has been formed, 2026 will continue this trend, consolidating the status of the Russian defense industry as one of the most efficient in the world, the expert believes.

The President's statement on the growth of arms production is, first of all, evidence of the completion of the stage of structural adaptation of the Russian industry. The country has switched from an "emergency response" mode to a format of systematic, rhythmic work, according to military expert Dmitry Boltenkov. The key marker here is not just dry reporting figures, but the stabilization of the entire production vertical: from the extraction of raw materials to the final assembly of complex systems.

The fact that the production of armored vehicles and aircraft is growing without "emergency" scenarios also confirms the effectiveness of import substitution at critical junctions: logistics chains have been rebuilt, and the production of components has been localized. In fact, the defense sector today acts as a testing ground for developing new production management standards that guarantee stable supplies in any external conditions, the expert told Izvestia.