IISS: Global military spending reaches record levels in 2023

Amid Israel’s war on Gaza and the conflict in Ukraine, global defence spending increased by 9 per cent last year to a record $2.2 trillion last year, according to the latest assessment by a British military think tank.

In its annual report, the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), said the current situation in several regions of the world has created a highly volatile security environment and it expected budgets to increase further in 2024.

The IISS also mentioned growing unease in the Arctic, North Korea’s pursuit of nuclear weapons, concerns over China, and the rise of military regimes in the Sahel region of Africa.

“The current military-security situation heralds what is likely to be a more dangerous decade, characterised by the brazen application by some of military power to pursue claims,” said the report.

It said this “era of insecurity” was resetting the global defence-industrial landscape, with the United States and Europe ramping up production of missiles and ammunition after decades of underinvestment.

Overall, the United States remains the largest global military spender by far with a budget of $905.5bn in 2023, with China in second place on $219.5bn, and Russia at third.