global-defence-spending-up-by-2-9pc-amid-security-concerns-sipri

Global defence spending surged by 2.9 per cent in 2025 despite a reduction by the world’s largest spender, the United States, according to the latest Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) report.

 

According to researcher Lorenzo Scarazzato, the decrease in US spending was actually fuelling increases in Europe and Asia, as the world marked “another year of war and intensified tensions”.

 

Scarazzato said this was also reflected in the global “military burden” — the share of worldwide GDP devoted to military spending — which reached its highest level since 2009.

 

“The spending pattern suggests that the world is feeling less secure and is spending on its military to compensate for the global landscape,” he said.

 

US defence spending in 2025 came down 7.5 per cent to $954 billion, especially as it froze financial aid to Ukraine. Washington had pledged a total of $127 billion to Kyiv over the previous three years.

 

However, the report reveals that the current cut is likely to be short-lived as the US Congress has approved a whopping $1 trillion defence budget for 2026, which could rise to $1.5 trillion in 2027 if US President Donald Trump’s budget proposal passes.

 

Also read: US military pushes for more drones, air defence systems

The main driver of the global increase was Russia and Europe due to the ongoing war in Ukraine, where spending rose 14 per cent to $864 billion.

 

According to the report, Germany alone spent 24 per cent more than in 2024, reaching $114 billion.

 

Besides, Spain’s annual defence spending jumped 50 per cent to $40.2 billion, pushing military spending above two per cent of GDP for the first time since 1994.

 

Russia’s defence spending rose by 5.9 per cent to $190 billion, while Ukraine, which is fighting Russia, boosted spending by 20 per cent to $84.1 billion — a staggering 40 per cent of GDP.

In Asia and Oceania, spending reached $681 billion, an 8.5 per cent increase from 2024 — the region’s largest annual increase since 2009.

 

China, which has been increasing spending every year for the past three decades, spent an estimated $336 billion in 2025.

 

Meanwhile, its adversary Japan raised military expenditure by 9.7 per cent to $62.2 billion, while Taiwan increased its spending by 14 per cent to $18.2 billion.