Almost everywhere in the world, more money was spent on defense spending last year than in previous years, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). from the report.
In 2023, all the countries of the world spent a total of more than 2.44 trillion dollars, i.e. more than two thousand billion, on their defense. That is 6.8 percent more than in 2022.
If the money spent on the defense of the countries of the world was divided equally among all the inhabitants of the world, each person would receive approximately 287 euros.
Defense spending has been increasing for the past nine years, but last year it increased for the first time in 15 years at the same time in the Americas, Asia, Africa, Europe and the Middle East.
– It’s hard to see a silver lining here. Competition between great powers, regional and local conflicts, crises and wars make even the countries of Western Europe, which are used to a long time of peace, prepare, says a professor at the National Defense University Tommi Koivula.
The general increase in prices and the increase in the cost of defense equipment may also explain the increase in defense spending globally. Many countries also made significant investments in their armed forces last year.
– Although there has been an increase in defense spending, relatively much more money was spent on armies and weapons in the world in the past, Koivula states.
The world’s wealth is therefore still spending less money on weapons than before, even though defense spending has increased.
The United States spent the most money on defense
The United States, China, Russia, India and Saudi Arabia accounted for 61 percent of the entire world’s defense spending
Last year, the United States spent more than $916 billion on defense. The United States increased its military spending by about 2.3 percent compared to the previous year.
The share of the United States in the combined defense spending of all countries was 37 percent. Relative to the gross domestic product, the United States spent 3.4 percent of its income on defense.
In 2023, Ukraine, which is fighting a defensive war, joined the top ten countries.
Ukraine’s defense spending increased by 51 percent compared to the previous year. Compared to ten years ago, the growth has been up to 1,270 percent.
– Russia’s full-scale attack on the territory of Ukraine in February 2022 undoubtedly increased defense spending, says Koivula.
Russia’s attack has become expensive for Ukraine. Last year, Ukraine’s military spending accounted for 37 percent of GDP and 58 percent of all government spending.
Ukraine spent 64.8 billion dollars on its defense expenditures. In addition, it received about 35 billion dollars in Western arms and weapons aid.
Thanks to the arms aid, Ukraine’s defense budget seems, at least in the light of the numbers, to be close to Russia’s military spending.
– This shows that Western arms aid has been important to Ukraine, although it is difficult to say based on the statistics what Russia counts as military spending.
Russia’s military spending increased to 109 billion last year. Russia increased its military spending by 24 percent compared to a year ago. In ten years, Russia has increased its military spending by more than 57 percent.
Relative to GDP, Russia spent more money on military spending than at any time since the collapse of the Soviet Union, almost six percent.
After Russia attacked, many European countries have significantly increased their defense spending
According to MPKK’s Koivula, Europe is returning to darker times, when the armed forces took more assets and resources from the state budget.
For example, Poland significantly increased its defense spending last year.
– Poland spent 31.6 billion euros. That is 75 percent more than a year earlier. However, it does not mean that Europe is preparing for war. In many European countries, the armies have slowly started to be restored to operational capacity. It is an expensive and laborious process.
Finland rose more than ten places in the list from 46th place to 35th place. In 2023, more than 7.3 billion euros were spent on defense in Finland.
According to the expert, Finland’s jump is probably explained by joining the military alliance and various material purchases, such as the purchase of F35 fighter jets.
From the Nordic countries, Sweden, Denmark and Norway each spent eight billion euros on defense last year, i.e. absolutely more than Finland. Relative to GDP, however, Finland spent more money on its defense than Sweden and Norway.
The attack by Hamas increased defense spending in the Middle East
Also in the Middle East, more money was spent on defense last year than before.
Among the countries in the Middle East, Saudi Arabia spent the most money on its defense, $75.8 billion.
– Saudi Arabia’s defense spending shows concern about the possible strengthening of Iran, says Koivula.
However, the largest increase in military spending in the region was in Israel.
Israel’s military spending increased by almost a quarter, i.e. to 27 billion dollars last year, which is probably explained by the war in Gaza and the attack by the extremist organization Hamas that started on October 7, Koivula estimates.
The recent strikes between Iran and Israel are not yet reflected in the statistics, but this is likely to increase Israel’s defense spending, according to an expert.
Conflicts and crises increase military spending
Among the Asian countries, China spends the most money on its defense, an estimated 296 billion dollars. China has been increasing its military spending every year for almost 30 years. Last year, the country increased its military spending by about six percent.
The growth of China’s influence and the increase in tensions in Asia have also caused many of China’s neighboring countries to prepare
For example, Japan spent 50.2 billion dollars and Taiwan 16.6 billion dollars in military spending last year. In both countries, military spending increased by 11 percent.
Defense spending also increased in South America, the Caribbean and Africa. For example, the Dominican Republic increased its military spending by 14 percent after gang violence erupted in neighboring Haiti.
In Africa, on the other hand, local conflicts increase defense spending. For example, the Democratic Republic of Congo more than doubled its military spending at the same time as relations with neighboring Rwanda have deteriorated.
See also the documentary Defenders of Ukraine: