Last year, all countries of the world allocated $2.24 trillion for defense in total. Expectedly, the US is the leader, and the largest growth was recorded in Ukraine. This was reported by the Stockholm Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).

What is known

European countries increased defense spending by 13% compared to 2021. Naturally, this is connected with the war in Ukraine. However, it is worth noting that European states have begun to invest more in weapons since 2014, when the Russian Federation annexed Crimea.

The total spending of the countries of Central and Western Europe reached $ 345 billion and for the first time exceeded the level of 1989. It was the last year of the Cold War. The growth of costs in comparison with 2013 amounted to 30%.

Finland, Lithuania, Sweden and Poland are the leaders in the growth of defense spending in 2022 in Europe – 36%, 27%, 12% and 11% respectively. In monetary terms, the United Kingdom spent the most – $68.5 billion, of which $2.5 billion went to military assistance to the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

Defense spending in Ukraine increased by 640% compared to 2021 at once and reached $44 billion. They accounted for 34% of GDP compared to only 3.2% in 2021.

As for the Russian Federation, it increased its costs to $86.4 billion, i.е. by about 9.2%. At the same time, expenditures turned out to be one third higher in comparison with the budget plans. This suggests that the invasion of Ukraine cost Russia much more than it expected.

The United States has invested the most in defense. The Pentagon spent $877 billion, 39% of the world’s total. One of the reasons for the increase is financial military assistance to the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

Countries in Asia and Oceania have allocated $575 billion to strengthen defense capabilities in 2022, up 2.7% year-on-year. More than half came from China – $292 billion and up 4.2% compared to 2021.

Finally, Japan increased spending by 5.9%. This is due to threats from North Korea and China. Annual defense spending in the Land of the Rising Sun has reached $46 billion, the last time such a level was observed in 1960.

Source: Breaking Defense