According to the annual report of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), world military expenditure rose to $2.443 trillion (€2.290 trillion), marking the largest annual increase in defence spending since 2009, as war and insecurity drive spending up for a ninth consecutive year. The top military spenders were the United States, China and Russia—and all three major military powers increased their military spending. Global military spending, meanwhile, increased in all regions for the first time since 2009, with spending in Europe, Asia, Oceania and the Middle East all rising. “The unprecedented surge in military spending is a direct response to the deteriorating global peace and security environment,” said Nan Tian, a senior researcher with SIPRI’s Military Expenditure and Arms Production Programme, in the summary of the findings released on Monday. The military conflict in Ukraine saw Russia increase its defence spending by 24 per cent to an estimated $109 billion (€100 billion), marking a 57 per cent increase since 2014, the year Russian authorities annexed Crimea. Ukraine was the eighth-largest spender in 2023, with its military spending increasing by 51 per cent to $64.8 billion (€60 billion), accounting for 58 per cent of Kyiv’s total government expenditure. Ukraine also received at least €32 billion in military aid during the year, including about €21 billion from the US. Combined, this aid and Ukraine’s own military spending was equivalent to about 91 per cent of Russia’s total spending. The report also found that the US remains the top military spender among NATO members, but European members of the Atlantic alliance have increased their defence spending. In 2023, the 31 members of NATO (not yet including Sweden, which became the 32nd member this year) accounted for $1.341 trillion (€1.260 trillion), or 55 per cent of global military spending. US military spending increased by 2.3 per cent to $916 billion (€860 billion) in 2023, accounting for 68 per cent of the NATO total. “For European NATO members, the past two years of war in Ukraine have fundamentally changed security perceptions,” said Lorenzo Scarazzato, a researcher with SIPRI’s Military Expenditure and Arms Production Programme. A decade after NATO members formally committed to a goal of spending 2 per cent of their gross domestic product (GDP) on their militaries, 11 of NATO’s 31 members met or exceeded this level in 2023—the highest number since the pledge was made. China—the world’s second-largest military spender—spent an estimated $296 billion (€278 billion) on its military in 2023, a 6 per cent increase compared with 2022 and marking the 29th consecutive year of increases for the Beijing regime. “China is directing much of its growing military budget towards enhancing the combat readiness of the People’s Liberation Army,” said Xiao Liang, a researcher with SIPRI’s Military Expenditure and Arms Production Programme. In another current conflict zone, military spending in the Middle East is estimated to have increased by 9 per cent to $200 billion (€188 billion) in 2023, the largest annual rate of growth in the region in the past decade. Israel’s military spending—the second largest in the region after Saudi Arabia’s—grew by 24 per cent to $27.5 billion (€25 billion), driven in part by a flare-up in fighting with Hamas after the Islamist group launched a barrage of rockets into Israeli territory in October last year. “The increase in Middle Eastern military spending in 2023 reflected the rapidly changing dynamics in the region—from the warming of diplomatic relations between Israel and several Arab states in recent years to the outbreak of a major war in Gaza and fears of a wider regional conflict,” said Diego Lopes da Silva, a senior researcher with SIPRI’s Military Expenditure and Arms Production Programme. According to the report released on Monday, India was the fourth-largest military spender globally in 2023, with outlays of $83.6 billion (€78 billion), up 4 per cent from 2022. The largest percentage increase in military spending by any country in 2023 was recorded by the Democratic Republic of the Congo (up 105 per cent), which has been grappling with a long-running conflict between the government and armed rebel groups. Read Also: Kyiv forces claim another Russian ship hit in Crimea (Portuguese version)