Stockholm (TDI): The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), in its Fact Sheet titled Trends in World Military Expenditure, 2024 recorded a 9.4% increase in the global military spending.
In other words, the world spent $2718 billion military and weapons in 2024, which is the “highest global total.” 2024 becomes the tenth consecutive year in which military spending has shown an upward trend.
Does this mean there is an ever-present threat of war or does it mean that active conflicts in the world are making it inevitable to cut down on defense spending? Both are true and it seems powerful and economically stable countries are in an arms race.
SIPRI’s fact sheet also recorded that military spending constituted 2.5% of the global gross domestic product. Unsurprisingly, the top five countries who spent the most on military, in the year 2024, were the United States, China, Russia, Germany and India; making 60% of the global spending.
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As the Russia-Ukraine war went on for the second year, Russia spent 38% more on its military, during the last year while Ukraine became the eight largest military spender; setting aside 34% of its GDP into defense expenditure.
Another region where military expenditures significantly increased was Europe; a 17% increase was recorded. Except for Malta, all other European countries increased their military spending.
NATO’s military expenditure constituted 55% of the global total. Both these trends are better understood when taken in the context of backing Ukraine against Russia.
Excluding the top fifteen countries on the list, the military spending for the rest of the world only amounted to 20%, in 2024. Pakistan does not exist among the top 15 spenders.
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SIPRI’s region-wise breakdown suggests that “countries in the Americas accounted for 40 per cent of global military spending in 2024, followed by countries in Europe (26 per cent), Asia and Oceania (23 per cent), the Middle East (9.0 per cent) and Africa (1.9 per cent).
The fact sheet records more than hundred countries worldwide which increased their military and defense spending in the last year.
Nuzhat Rana is an Associate Editor at The Diplomatic Insight.
