Russia Will Receive 24 Submarines and 54 Warships by 2020

Last year, President Vladimir Putin said the naval procurement of submarines and surface ships would be a priority in the coming decade as part of a major military rearmament program.

Around 5 trillion Russian Rubles or $166 billion has been set aside for the modernization and rearmament of the Russian Navy by 2020.

According to the Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, the Russian Navy will receive 24 submarines and 54 surface warships by 2020. These include:

• 3 Project 955 / Borey class and 5 Project 955A / Improved Borey-A nuclear class ballistic missile submarines
• 8 Project 885 / Yasen class / Graney class nuclear attack submarines
• Project 636M / Improved Kilo class diesel submarines
• Project 677 / Lada class diesel submarines
• Project 22350 / Admiral Gorshkov class frigates 
• Project 20380 / Steregushchy class corvettes
• Project 21630 / Buyan class corvettes
• Project 11711 / Ivan Gren Class large landing ships

Many of the older ships and submarines such as the Admiral Kuznetsov aircraft carrier, Kirov class cruiser and Sierra class submarines are also scheduled to be brought back.

The Russian Navy is currently just a shadow of it once was during Soviet times. Only a fraction of its surface ships and submarines remain operational, with the majority having been decommissioned since the end of the Cold War and the absence of sufficient financial resources.

The Russian program is just part of a global trend towards increased naval power that can be observed throughout the world:

• the United States continues to spent record amounts despite its budget deficits
• China has embarked on a comprehensive naval expansion and modernization 
• European countries such as the United Kingdom, France and Italy continue to allocate resources for modernization despite fiscal problems
• Japan is steadily improving its Navy
• India has ambitious plans for an increased Navy
• Even countries such as Brazil that didn't place much importance in the past now want to acquire more naval power

It can be argued that most of these countries are probably not in a position to spend so heavily on their military considering the state of their economy. Yet, nations continue to allocate huge resources, which is an indication of how much they recognize the importance of naval power.


http://en.rian.ru/military_news/20130311/179945052/Russian-Navy-to-Receive-24-Subs-54-Warships-by-2020.html

By DoD [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons