Russia will develop new weapons...says V. Putin

President Vladimir Putin says Russia will develop new weapons that will ensure its security without entering a costly arms race with the West.

He said this yesterday after touring a shooting range outside Moscow that some of the weapons he saw there looked like they came straight from a science fiction movie.

He says Russia's military modernisation plans should be realistic and take into account the current economic situation. The Russian economy is facing a recession under a combined blow of Western sanctions over Ukraine and slumping prices for oil, its main cash earner.

Without naming any country, Putin says Russia could respond to military threats without spending as much as others on defence, adding that "we can and should respond to that challenge".