World military spending reaches record levels: SIPRI report
- Global military expenditure has surpassed US$2 trillion per year for the first time
- Spending likely to rise further in some countries after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
Global military spending rose again in 2021, setting records as Russia continued to beef up its military prior to its invasion of Ukraine, researchers said on Monday, predicting the trend would continue in Europe in particular.
Despite the economic fallout of the global Covid-19 pandemic, countries around the world increased their arsenals, with global military spending rising by 0.7 per cent last year, according to a report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).
“In 2021 military spending rose for the seventh consecutive time to reach US$2.1 trillion. That is the highest figure we have ever had,” Diego Lopes da Silva, senior researcher at SIPRI, said.
Russia’s spending grew by 2.9 per cent – the third year of consecutive growth – to US$65.9 billion.
Defence spending accounted for 4.1 per cent of Russia’s gross domestic product (GDP), “much higher than the world average”, and making Moscow the fifth largest spender in the world, Lopes da Silva said.
High oil and gas revenues helped the country boost military expenditure. Lopes da Silva noted that Russia saw a sharp uptick in spending towards the end of the year.
