More than US$2.1 trillion was spent on military equipment worldwide in 2021, according to a report released this Monday (25). The United States, China, India, the United Kingdom and Russia account for two-thirds of this amount.
More than US$2.1 trillion was spent on military equipment worldwide in 2021, according to a report released this Monday (25). The United States, China, India, the United Kingdom and Russia account for two-thirds of this amount.
Despite the negative consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic on the economy, arms expenditures set a new record: US$2.1 trillion. “This is the highest amount we’ve ever recorded,” says researcher Diego Lopes da Silva at the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (Sipri).
According to the report prepared by the Institute, Russia’s military material expenditure increased by 2.9% for the third year in a row, reaching 65.9 billion US dollars. Lopes da Silva observes that spending represents 4.1% of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), “a higher level than the world average.”
According to him, profits from oil and gas exports allowed Moscow to finance massive expenditures on war equipment. However, the researcher assesses that it is unlikely that the Kremlin will maintain the same level of arms spending due to the wave of sanctions imposed by Western countries against Russia since the invasion of Ukraine.
When it annexed Crimea in 2014, Russia also faced sanctions at a time when energy prices were falling. At the time, this had little effect on Moscow’s acquisition of military supplies. “We now have even more serious sanctions, but the higher energy value could help Russia keep arms purchases at the same level,” repeats Lopes da Silva.
On the other hand, Ukraine’s military spending has increased by 72 percent since the annexation of Crimea. Although Kiev’s investment in war materials decreased by more than 8% to $5.9 billion in 2021, the amount today represents 3.2% of the country’s GDP.
tension in europe
While tensions rose in Europe, NATO member countries increased their expenditures. Last year, eight members of the Atlantic alliance allocated 2% of their GDP to the military budget.
The United States was the country that invested the most in arms purchases, spending US$801 billion in 2021. However, it went out of the uptrend and decreased investments by 1.4%. Over the past decade, US spending on research and development has increased by 24%, while arms supplies have decreased by 6.4%.
“The U.S. government has repeatedly stressed the need for the national military to maintain its technological advantages over strategic rivals,” said Alexandra Marksteiner, also a researcher at Sipri.
China has been increasing its arms investment for 27 years
China, the world’s second largest investor in military equipment, increased its spending by 4.7% and spent US$ 293 billion. Beijing thus marks its 27th consecutive year in weapons equipment.
Strengthening China’s military capacity has urged neighboring countries to do the same. Japan, for example, spent $7 billion, up 7.3%, the highest level since 1972.
It invested 4% more in the Australian military and reached $31.8 billion in 2021 devoted to armaments. India, the third country in the world to buy more war materials, spent US$76.6 billion increasing its financing in 2021, but more modestly: 0.9%.
The United Kingdom was in fourth place with a 3% increase in the amount allocated to arms purchases, which reached US$68.4 billion in 2021. The British took the place of Saudi Arabia, which cut its spending by 17% last year. An investment estimated at US$55.6 billion.
(With information from AFP)
source: Noticias
