The findings of SIPRI Yearbook 2026 show that India is focusing more on modernising its weapons while countries are now relying more on nuclear weapons as instruments of national power. This reverses decades of efforts to reduce the numbers and role of nuclear weapons — even as the risks of miscalculation and escalation are rising, SIPRI said in a statement. The Stockholm-based think-tank said India is believed to have once again "slightly expanded its nuclear arsenal" in 2025 and continued development of new types of nuclear delivery systems.
"The modernisation programme is increasingly focused on developing long-range weapons capable of reaching targets throughout China, although planning also continues to be focused on India's long-standing rivalry with Pakistan," it said.
SIPRI further said, "Pakistan continued to develop new delivery systems and accumulate fissile material in 2025, suggesting that its nuclear arsenal might expand over the coming decade. The brief armed conflict between India and Pakistan in May 2025 saw India attacking Pakistani air and missile bases that are likely to have nuclear-related roles, but both sides took steps to avoid escalation.”
At the start of 2026, nine states — the US, Russia, the UK, France, China, India, Pakistan, North Korea, and Israel — together possessed approximately 12,187 nuclear weapons, of which 9,745 were in military stockpiles and considered to be potentially operationally available, the report said.
Overall, the number of nuclear warheads in the world continues to decline, but this is only due to the US and Russia "dismantling retired warheads," the report said.
Military spendings of countries —
According to the report, the US remained by far the largest military spender in the world; its expenditure of USD 954 billion in 2025 (7.5 per cent lower than in 2024) accounted for 33 per cent of total global spending. China is the second largest military spender (USD 336 billion), while Russia stands at the third (USD 190 billion). Germany was the fourth largest military spender, and India was at the fifth spot, with an expenditure of USD 92.1 billion in 2025, an increase of 8.9 per cent over the last year, according to data shared in the report.
"India and Pakistan overtly integrating cyber operations into armed conflict for the first time when an unusually severe military crisis erupted in May 2025; and Iran and Israel employing coordinated digital retaliation during their confrontation," it added.
In its list of major events, the report mentioned "May 7-10 India and Pakistan exchange intense cross-border fire".
SIPRI said over the course of the past two decades, there has been a gradual shift away from the liberal paradigm of peacemaking that previously dominated conflict resolution efforts towards a "more power-based and transactional approach".
In 2025, the global landscape of armed conflict retained the form it took in 2024, with large-scale and sustained violence across multiple regions. The number of locations of armed conflict fell slightly, from 50 states in 2024 to 49 in 2025.
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