Global Military Spending Fall, Despite Sharp Increases In The East
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Worldwide military expenditure fell by 1.9 percent to $1.75 trillion last year, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), mainly due to large decreases in spending in the west; as large investments were noted in Asia, Russia, the Middle East and Africa.
In a study published Monday, SIPRI noted that worldwide military spending would have actually increased by 1.8 percent last year, if the researchers had excluded U.S. data.
Worldwide military expenditure fell by 1.9 percent to $1.75 trillion last year, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), mainly due to large decreases in spending in the west; as large investments were noted in Asia, Russia, the Middle East and Africa.
In a study published Monday, SIPRI noted that worldwide military spending would have actually increased by 1.8 percent last year, if the researchers had excluded U.S. data.
The U.S., still the world’s largest military spender saw a 7.8 percent drop in military expenditure last year as a result of the end of the war in Iraq, the beginning of the drawdown from Afghanistan, and the effects of automatic budget cuts passed by Congress in 2011.
Nevertheless at $640 billion, U.S. military expenditure was still nearly triple what their closest competitor China had spent ($188 billion).
In third place, Russia spent $87.8 billion on its military last year. SIPRI noted that for the first time in a decade, Moscow had invested a greater percentage of its GDP in its military than the U.S. (4.1 percent of GDP to 3.8 percent).
According to SIPRI program director Sam Perlo-Freeman, the increase in Russian spending was in line with the country’s 2011-2020 State Armaments Plan, which aims to spend over $700 billion on modernizing Russia’s military equipment, technology and industry.
[quote]“The goal of building up military capability has been seen as more urgent since the Georgia war in 2008, which revealed serious shortcomings in Russia’s military technology and readiness,” Perlo-Freeman told the Associated Press.[/quote]Related: Asia Leading Spike in Global Arms Trade
Related: China Ups Military Budget By 12.2 Percent
Elsewhere, military spending in the Middle East increased by 4.0 percent in 2013, reaching an estimated $150 billion. Notably, Saudi Arabia’s spending had increased by 14 percent to $67 billion, allowing it to overtake the U.K., France and Japan as the world’s 4th largest military spender.
In Africa, over two-thirds of the countries increased their military spending last year. Military spending in Africa increased by 8.3 percent in 2013, reaching an estimated $44.9 billion.
[quote]“The increase in military spending in emerging and developing countries continues unabated,” said Perlo-Freeman. “While in some cases it is the natural result of economic growth or a response to genuine security needs, in other cases it represents a squandering of natural resource revenues, the dominance of autocratic regimes, or emerging regional arms races.”[/quote]
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