Global military spending surged by 7% in 2023 to reach $2.43 trillion, marking the sharpest annual increase since 2009, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) report said.
The escalation in spending comes amidst worsening international peace and security conditions, the report titled ‘Trends in World Military Expenditure, 2023’ said.
Nan Tian, a senior researcher at SIPRI's Military Expenditure and Arms Production Programme, cautioned that while states are prioritizing military prowess, they risk triggering a cycle of action and reaction in an increasingly unstable geopolitical and security environment.
SIPRI highlighted that the U.S., China, and Russia were the leading contributors to this expenditure.
The report said Russia raised spending by 24% to an estimated $109 billion. Ukraine increased spending by 51% to $65 billion and received at least $35 billion in military aid from other countries.
“Combined, this aid and Ukraine’s own military spending were equivalent to about 91% of Russian spending,” the think-tank said.
The report further noted that the NATO member countries' spending totaled 55% of the world’s expenditure.
“For European NATO states, the past two years of war in Ukraine have fundamentally changed the security outlook,” SIPRI researcher Lorenzo Scarazzato said.
“This shift in threat perceptions is reflected in growing shares of GDP being directed towards military spending, with the NATO target of 2% increasingly being seen as a baseline rather than a threshold to reach.”
NATO member countries are anticipated to allocate a minimum of 2% of their gross domestic product towards defense spending as per the alliance's requirements. According to SIPRI, the majority of European NATO members have increased their defense expenditures. The U.S. has raised its spending by 2% to $916 billion, constituting approximately two-thirds of the overall NATO military expenditure.
The percentage changes are expressed in real terms, in constant 2022 prices, SIPRI added.
