Global Military Spending Hits a Record High of $2.44 Trillion: Report

Countries around the world spent an “all-time high” of $2.44 trillion on their militaries in 2023, according to an annual report from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. The new figure marked a 6.8 percent increase from 2022 and the steepest year-on-year increase since 2009, according to the report published on April 22 and written by four researchers at the institute’s Military Expenditure and Arms Production Program. The report noted that military spending increased in five geographical regions—Asia and Oceania, Africa, the Americas, Europe, and the Middle East—for the first time since 2009. “The unprecedented rise in military spending is a direct response to the global deterioration in peace and security,’ said Nan Tian, senior researcher at the institute, according to a press release. “States are prioritizing military strength but they risk an action-reaction spiral in the increasingly volatile geopolitical and security landscape.”...