The war in Ukraine and rising geopolitical tensions last year caused the largest increase in global military spending since 2009, according to a report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).

The investment in weapons reached the record figure of 2.29 trillion euros, 6.8% more in real terms than in 2022 and 2.3% of global gross domestic product (GDP). “The unprecedented increase in military spending is a direct response to the global deterioration in peace and security. States are prioritizing military force, but risk an action-reaction spiral in a more volatile geopolitical and security landscape” , the report notes.

The US and NATO monopolize global spending

The United States maintains its incontestable dominance with an investment of 860,000 million euros, 2.3% more, and 37% of global spending (three times more than China, second on the list), as well as 68% of that of the 31 NATO member countries.

The study highlights the greater investment in defense by European NATO countries, which now represents 28% of that of the entire Alliance, the highest level in a decade, with eleven of them above the commitment of 2% of GDP. Standing out among them is Poland, which, with a year-on-year increase of 75%, recorded the highest annual increase in Europe.

The joint expenditure of NATO members amounted to 1.26 trillion euros, 55% of the total in the world. “The last two years of war in Ukraine have fundamentally changed the perspectives of European states on security. That change in threat perception is reflected in directing increasing shares of GDP to military spending,” writes SIPRI.

Russia, third in the world rankingallocated an estimated figure of 102 billion euros, 4.5% overall and 24% more year-on-year, which also represents 5.9% of its GDP.

Ukrainethe world’s eighth largest investor in arms, increased its spending by 51% to 60,762 million euros, a third of its GDP. The 32.819 million euros in military aid received by Kyiv reduced the gap with Russia and total Ukrainian military spending was 91% of Moscow’s.

Increased investment in Asia and the Middle East

China spent nearly 278 billion euros, 6% more and 12% of the total, which accounted for half of the investment in the Asia-Oceania region and dragged down other countries, according to SIPRI. Thus, Japan (tenth) increased its military spending by 11% and Taiwan by 11%. The Middle East recorded the largest increase in a decade, 9%, with Saudi Arabia (fifth) as the regional leader, followed by Israel (15th), which increased its spending by 24% due to its large-scale offensive in the Gaza Strip after the Hamas attacks last October.

“The large increase in military spending in the Middle East in 2023 reflects the rapidly changing situation in the regionfrom the improvement of diplomatic relations between Israel and several Arab countries in recent years to the outbreak of a major war in Gaza and the fear of a regional conflict,” notes SIPRI.

The fight against organized crime drives spending in Central America

The report highlights that the increased crime levels have in turn caused a greater use of military force against criminal gangs in Central America and the Caribbean, resulting in a 54% increase in spending in 2023. In the Dominican Republic there was a 14% year-on-year increase in response to worsening gang violence in Haiti.

“The use of the military to suppress gang violence has been a growing trend in the region for years, as governments are either unable to solve the problem with conventional means or prefer immediate and often more violent responses,” says SIPRI.

Brazil remains the regional leader in South America, and the eighteenth country worldwide, with spending of 21,473 million euros, 3.1% more.