MOSCOW, March 31. /TASS/. The US spends an extraordinary amount of money on security, defense and law enforcement agencies, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said in an interview with the International Affairs magazine.
"There has been a steady buildup in US military spending and the spending on security, defense and law enforcement agencies in general. It has already exceeded $1 trillion, a staggering figure. I understand that there are certain urges on the part of the US to try to get more money for collective defense from NATO allies. Some particularly zealous figures there, who are aggressive toward Russia, are sometimes willing to get ahead of the Americans and set themselves heightened 'capitalist emulation’ goals by certain dates," he said, according to a fragment of the interview posted online.
The diplomat suggested that the alliance could be making these moves ahead of a new meeting with US President Donald Trump. According to Ryabkov, Russia remembers how heightened socialist emulation goals were sometimes not met due to objective reasons.
"Let's see whether this capitalist version of the Communist Youth League in Brussels will have enough drive and enthusiasm to come through on everything, as they plow through the budgetary virgin lands in their countries," he said.