Military spending will rise to new highs in 2023, amid the war in Ukraine and tensions in China

Global military spending reached a record high of $2.44 trillion in 2023, up 6.8 percent from the previous year, amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, crises in the Middle East and the military build-up of China, an international security think tank said on Monday.

The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute said total spending rose for the ninth year in a row, the largest amount since comparable data became available in 1988.

The five highest spending countries were the United States, China, Russia, India and Saudi Arabia, accounting for 61 percent of the global total, while notable increases were seen in Europe, Asia and Oceania, and the Middle East.

File photo taken in April 2023 shows a steel worker moving an artillery projectile during the production process at the Scranton Army Ammunition Plant in Scranton, Pennsylvania. (AP/Kyodo)

“The unprecedented increase in military spending is a direct response to the global deterioration of peace and security,” said Nan Tian, ​​senior researcher at SIPRI’s Military Expenditure and Arms Production Program.

The United States spent $916 billion, up 2.3 percent from 2022, while Chinese military spending was estimated at $296 billion, up 6 percent, marking the 29th consecutive year of increase, according to the report.

Japan’s defense spending rose 11 percent, the biggest increase since 1972, to $50.2 billion, putting it 10th in the world, while South Korea spent $47.9 billion, putting it 11th .

“China is spending a large part of its growing military budget on increasing the combat readiness of the People’s Liberation Army,” said Xiao Liang, another SIPRI researcher. “This has prompted the governments of Japan, Taiwan and others to significantly build up their military capabilities, a trend that will accelerate even further in the coming years.”

Ukraine’s military spending rose 51 percent to $64.8 billion, from 11th to eighth in the world, the report said. Spending by Israel, which is in conflict with Palestinians and others, rose 24 percent to $27.5 billion.

On October 7, 2023, the Palestinian militant group Hamas launched surprise attacks on Israel from the Gaza Strip, killing and capturing many Israelis and foreigners. Israel declared war on Hamas and launched aerial bombardments and ground operations that killed tens of thousands of people in Gaza.

Third-place Russia, which has been at war in Ukraine since February 2022, saw its military spending grow 24 percent to an estimated $109 billion.

This figure accounted for 5.9 percent of Russia’s gross domestic product, the highest level for the country on a GDP scale since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.

By region, the Americas accounted for 41 percent of global military spending, followed by Asia and Oceania with 24 percent. Europe came third.

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