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- Global military spending reaches highest level since Cold War era
Global military spending reaches highest level since Cold War era
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Global military spending has reached a level not seen since the end of the Cold War, with a 9.4 percent increase in real terms compared to 2023. This significant rise was driven by increases in Europe and the Middle East, with several European countries experiencing "unprecedented" rises in military spending.
The impact of sanctions on Iran severely limited its capacity to increase spending.
We've seen in 2024 that 18 out of the 32 NATO countries reached the 2-percent GDP spending target, which is the highest since the founding of the alliance.
Germany became the biggest spender in Central and Western Europe for the first time since its reunification.
For example, we've seen many European countries cutting other spending like international aid to fund the increase in military spending, and ... trying to raise taxes or rely on loans or debt to fund the spending.
This really speaks to the heightened geopolitical tensions.
There has really been a shift in European defence policies, where we will see large-scale procurement plans into the arms industry in the years to come.
It was the highest year-on-year increase since the end of the Cold War.
The rapid spending increases among European NATO members were driven mainly by the ongoing Russian threat and concerns about possible US disengagement within the alliance.
It's capabilities that matter, and how those capabilities are built and controlled.
The scarce assets America needs, particularly in an Indo-Pacific focus, are the very high-end [air]lift, missiles – capabilities that the current focus of European expenditure is not designed to create … because these are the capabilities that nation states wish most to keep to themselves.
By the time you actually need to pay for the stuff, all those exemptions that came with Rearm Europe have expired, and the year-by-year continuation doesn't provide the stability that defence policy needs.
It takes time to train people, to buy the stuff, to build the stuff, to deliver the stuff.
So we need to have an honest conversation about which countries are prepared to work together on these issues … and if you look at where our natural partners are to develop those high end capabilities, it is East Asia, Germany, to a lesser extent France and Britain, and what I think of as Commonwealth – so Australia, Canada.
The increase was expected, though it was still somewhat shocking to see it unfold.
I do believe we will see further increases in the years ahead. Europe recognises the need to stand on its own and not rely as heavily on the United States.
In my opinion, high spending will not turn the war decisively for either side; it will only result in further death.
Global Military Spending Surge
- US Widens Lead as Global Arms Exporter Amid Increased European Demand
- Global defense budget reaches new record high of $2440bn
sources
perspectives
- 1.US Foreign Policy
- 2.Israel-Palestine Conflict
- 3.Russian Foreign Policy
- 4.Russia-Ukraine War
- 5.Chinese Foreign Policy
- 6.China Claims in South China Sea
- 7.North-South Korea Conflict
- 8.European defense
- 9.Israel-Iran Conflict
- 10.German Economy
countries
- 1.China
- 2.Germany
- 3.Greece
- 4.Israel
- 5.India
- 6.Iran, Islamic Republic of
- 7.Lithuania
- 8.Malta
- 9.Russian Federation
- 10.Ukraine
- 11.United States
organizations
- 1.ReArm Europe
- 2.North Atlantic Treaty Organisation
- 3.Stockholm International Peace Research Institute
- 4.Bruegel
- 5.European Union
- 6.Leiden University
- 7.SIPRI Military Expenditure and Arms Production Programme