In 2024, global military spending will reach a new high of $2.7 trillion, up 9.4% from a year earlier. This is the sharpest growth since the end of the Cold War, and the trend of increasing defense spending has been observed for ten years in a row, according to a report by the Stockholm Institute for Peace Research (SIPRI).
The largest increases were recorded in Europe and the Middle East – a direct consequence of the war in Ukraine and the conflict in the Gaza Strip. In particular, Germany’s military spending has increased significantly, reaching a mark of 88.5 billion dollars last year, which is 28% higher than a year earlier. Now Germany ranks fourth in the world in terms of the size of its military budget – after the United States, China and Russia.
Record defense spending was also recorded in Ukraine and Russia. Ukraine last year allocated 34% of its GDP to defense (for comparison: Germany – about 2%). Russia brought its military spending to 7.1% of GDP last year, totaling $149 billion – a 38% increase from a year earlier.
