Global military spending reaches record levels

2023-04-24 20:38:45, Kosova & Bota CNA

Global military spending rose for the eighth year in a row, reaching a new record of $2.24 trillion in 2022, with a sharp increase in Europe mainly due to spending by Russia and Ukraine, an organization said on Monday. Swedish study.

Global spending rose by 3.7%, but in Europe it rose by 13% - the biggest increase in at least 30 years, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) report said. Military aid to Ukraine and concerns about a growing threat from Russia "overwhelmingly influenced other countries' decision-making on military spending."

The independent Swedish institute says the three countries with the biggest defense spending are the United States, China and Russia, which together account for 56% of the world's military spending.

The increase "is an indication that we are living in an increasingly insecure world," said researcher Nan Tian, ??with the Program on Military Expenditure and Arms Production at the Swedish institute SIPRI.

Some countries made significant increases in their military spending following Russia's attack on Ukraine, while others have announced plans to increase spending over a period of a decade. Some of the biggest increases are in countries near Russia: Finland (36%), Lithuania (27%), Sweden (12%) and Poland (11%).

Military spending in Europe grew at a record pace during 2022, reaching a level not seen since the Cold War, global security experts say.

Global military spending reaches record levels

The increase in Europe pushed military spending to a new record of $2.24 billion, or 2.2% of the world's gross domestic product, according to data from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).

"It is because of the war in Ukraine, which is increasing the expenses of European budgets. But there are also unresolved and worsening tensions in East Asia between the United States and China," says researcher Nan Tian, ??co-author of the SIPRI study.

As Russia attacked Ukraine, Europe spent 13% more on the military in 2022 compared to the previous 12 months.

The figures do not reflect the rapid rise in inflation, meaning real spending was even higher, researchers say.

This is the largest increase in more than 30 years, and is a return to the level of spending in 1989, when the Berlin Wall came down.

"In Europe it is at the highest level since the end of the Cold War," said Mr. Tian.

Global military spending reaches record levels

Ukraine alone increased its military spending sevenfold to $44 billion, nearly a third of its GDP. The country has also benefited from billions of dollars in weaponry donated by other countries, the SIPRI study notes.

Meanwhile, Russia's military spending increased by 9.2% last year.

"Even if you take the two warring countries out of the accounts, (military) spending in Europe has still increased a lot," Mr. Tian said.

Military spending in Europe, reaching $480 billion in 2022, has already increased by a third over the past decade, and the trend is expected to continue and accelerate over the next decade.

The European continent may have increased military spending, as in 2022, for several years to come.

After falling sharply in the 1990s, global military spending has been on the rise since the 2000s.

The increase was initially the result of China's massive investment in the military, which was further followed by renewed tensions with Russia following the annexation of Crimea in 2014.

Global military spending reaches record levels

Half of the growth from the US, China

The United States alone has about 39% of global military spending. Together with China, which ranks second with 13%, the two countries account for over half of the globe's military spending.

Other countries follow at a long distance – Russia at 3.9%, India at 3.6% and Saudi Arabia at 3.3%.

"China has been investing more and more in its naval forces, certainly as a way to expand its reach towards Taiwan, and even beyond the South China Sea," Mr Tian said.

Japan, as well as Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam and Australia are following the same trend.

Global military spending reaches record levels

Britain is the country with the highest military spending in Europe and ranks sixth globally, at 3.1%, followed by Germany at 2.5% and France at 2.4% -- figures that also include donations to Ukraine.

Britain, which is the second largest donor to Ukraine after the United States, “spends more than France and Germany. It also gave more military aid than France and Germany," Mr Tian said.

Poland, the Netherlands and Sweden were among the European countries that increased military investment the most over the past decade.

Modern and expensive weaponry may explain some of the large increases in military spending, such as in the case of Finland, which last year bought 64 American F-35 fighter jets.

* For this article, data was obtained from the news agencies Associated Press and AFP./VOA