The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) has released a review of military spending by countries for 2023. According to the data, military spending worldwide rose by 6.8% in 2023 compared to the previous year. This is the sharpest increase since 2009.
Military spending in 2023 increased unprecedentedly around the world, while in Russia it became the highest since the collapse of the USSR, and in Ukraine for the same period, the world's largest increase in military spending relative to GDP was noted, according to the SIPRI report.
The authors of the report state that for the first time since 2009, military spending in 2023 increased in all five geographic regions defined by SIPRI, up to 6.8% and amounted to $2.44 trillion. Moreover, the most spending on weapons grew in Europe, Asia, Oceania and the Middle East.
In 2023, Russia's spending on armaments increased by 24% to an estimated $109 billion, reaching a record 5.9% of GDP. This is a 57% increase from 2014, when Russia annexed Crimea. Thus, Russia's military spending has exceeded the level recorded since the collapse of the Soviet Union, SIPRI emphasizes.
Currently, Russia ranks third in the world in terms of military spending, behind only the United States ($916 billion) and China ($296 billion), the authors of the study note.
In Ukraine, military spending in 2023 increased by 51% to $64.8 billion, which is 37% of the country's GDP and 58% of all government spending.
At the same time, Ukraine's defense spending was 59% of Russia's. Together with foreign aid to Ukraine, its total military spending is roughly equivalent to that of Russia.
According to the institute, Belarus' military expenditures range from 1 to 2% of GDP.
