Global military spending reaches record high in 2022

Global military spending reached an all-time high in 2022. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine triggered the biggest annual increase in spending in Europe since the end of the Cold War three decades ago, the conflict and arms think tank said, cited by Reuters.

The Russian invasion, which began in February 2022 after years of rising tensions, has prompted European countries to rush to increase their spending.

Global military spending rose 3.7% in real terms in 2022, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) said in a statement.

European military spending also increased by 13% last year, with many countries increasing military budgets and plans as tensions escalated.

“This included multi-year plans for increased spending by various governments,” said SIPRI senior fellow Diego López da Silva, quoted by the publication. Reuters. “As a result, we can reasonably expect that military spending in Central and Western Europe will continue to rise in the coming years.”

Ukraine’s military spending increased by 640% in 2022, the highest annual increase recorded in SIPRI data since 1949, and this amount does not include huge amounts of financial military aid provided by the West.

Meanwhile, Russia’s military spending increased by about 9.2%, although SIPRI acknowledged that the numbers were “highly uncertain given the growing lack of transparency of the financial authorities” since the start of the war in Ukraine.

“The gap between Russia’s budget plans and its actual military spending in 2022 suggests that the invasion of Ukraine cost Russia much more than anticipated,” said Lucie Bero-Sudro, director of SIPRI’s military spending and armaments program.

According to ReutersMoscow says its “special military operation” was necessary to defend against what it sees as a hostile and aggressive West.