JAKARTA - Russia has funds to support four Ukrainian regions it annexed last week, which was announced by President Vladimir Putin as part of a state budget, Finance Minister Anton Siluanov told parliament Monday.
"Priority for the next three years is the full integration of new regions," Siluanov said, without saying how much funds would be spent.
"The federal budget has the resources needed for this, both for the provision of current social standards. As well as funds for the economic recovery of the new territory of the Russian Federation," he continued.
Russia budgeted for revenue of 27.7 trillion rubles this year and spent 29 trillion rubles, which led to a deficit of 1.3 trillion rubles or 0.9 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), according to the Ministry of Finance.
The budget deficit is expected to expand to 2 percent of next year's GDP before narrowing to 0.7 percent of GDP by 2025.
Russia has classified the purpose of spending 6.6 trillion rubles, or nearly a quarter of its total spending, next year, the draft state budget showed last week.
Russia declared annexation of the Lugansk, Donetsk, Kherson and Zaporizhia territories last week, after holding what it called a referendum in Ukraine's occupation.
"This is the will of millions of people," the President said in a speech before hundreds of top officials at St George's Hall, Kremlin, last Friday.
"People living in Lugansk, Donetsk, the Kherson region, and the Zapoirzhia region are our citizens forever," he said.
Western governments and Kyiv say the vote violates international law and is coercive and non-presentative.
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