Will the pandemic revise countries' arms budgets? World military spending reached its highest level in 2019 since the end of the Cold War, with the United States leading the way, according to a report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (Sipri) published on Monday .
1.782 billion euros in military spending worldwide
Over the year as a whole, military spending amounted to 1.917 billion dollars (1.782 billion euros) worldwide, an increase of 3.6% over one year - the highest since 2010. " Military spending has reached its highest level since the end of the Cold War, "in 1989, also noted Nan Tian, a researcher at Sipri, interviewed by AFP.
The number one budget remains that of the United States, which increased 5.3% in 2019 to $ 732 billion - or 38% of global spending. After seven years of decline, the country's military spending started to rise again in 2018.
Behind the United States follow China, with 261 billion dollars, an increase of 5.1% over one year, and India with 71.1 billion dollars (+ 6.8% over a year). While China's spending over the past 25 years has closely followed the country's economic growth curve, the investments also reflect China's ambition for a "world-class army," according to Nan Tian. "China has openly declared that it essentially wants to compete with the United States as a military superpower," he said.
The country's progress also partially explains the rise of India, explains Sipri. "India's tensions and rivalry with Pakistan and China are among the determining factors in the increase in military spending" of the country, according to Siemon Wezeman, another researcher at the institute, quoted in a statement.
Reconsider spending against Covid-19
The top 5 of the top spenders alone - including Russia and Saudi Arabia - alone account for more than 60% of total military spending. Germany, 7th behind France, recorded the strongest increase in the top 15: spending increased by 10% in 2019 to $ 49.3 billion - partly due to the increased perception of a Russian threat, according to the authors of the report.
If Nan Tian notes that "the growth of military spending has accelerated in recent years", he also warns that the trend could be reversed due to the pandemic of new coronavirus which is shaking the world economy. As the world heads towards a potential recession, Nan Tian argues that governments will have to reconsider military spending in the face of sectors like health and education. "It is very likely that this will have a real effect on military spending," he said.
But history shows that a drop in military spending in a context of crisis never lasts long, explains the researcher. "We could see a drop in spending for one to three years, then a new increase in the coming years," he explains.
World
Global military spending increases sharply in 2019
Society
Military spending: France leaves the top five in favor of India, the United States still far ahead
- Budget
- Army
- Expenses
- France
- United States
- World
- Military