Military spending in 2024 rises unprecedented 9.4% to $2.72 trillion
Global military expenditures in 2024 rose 9.4 percent from the year before to a record $2.72 trillion, an international security think tank said Monday, logging the steepest hike since it began compiling the data in 1988.
The figure climbed for the 10th consecutive year, with recent increases reflecting Russia's full-scale war on Ukraine that began in February 2022 and heightened tensions in the Middle East, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute said.
"Over 100 countries around the world raised their military spending in 2024. As governments increasingly prioritize military security, often at the expense of other budget areas, the economic and social trade-offs could have significant effects on societies for years to come," said Xiao Liang, researcher at the institute's Military Expenditure and Arms Production Program, in a statement.
By country, the United States topped the list with outlays of $997 billion, up 5.7 percent, while China raised its spending by 7.0 percent to an estimated $314 billion, with the two countries accounting for nearly half of the global total. Russia, Germany and India followed behind the two superpowers.
Russia boosted spending by 38 percent to an estimated $149 billion, double the level in 2015 but the actual amount is likely to be higher as part of its expenditure was marked as classified in 2024.
Outlays by Ukraine, ranking eighth, grew 2.9 percent to $64.7 billion. The figure represents 34 percent of its gross domestic product, the largest share among all countries in 2024, it said.
In Asia, China's spending rose for the 30th straight year, accounting for 50 percent of all military spending in Asia and Oceania.
Japan's military spending rose 21 percent to $55.3 billion, the largest annual increase since 1952, and comprised 1.4 percent of the country's GDP, the highest ratio since 1958. The country placed 10th in the world ranking, the same as the previous year.
"Major military spenders in the Asia-Pacific region are investing increasing resources into advanced military capabilities," said Nan Tian, another SIPRI researcher. "With several unresolved disputes and mounting tensions, these investments risk sending the regions into a dangerous arms-race spiral."
Israel's military expenditure surged by 65 percent to $46.5 billion, climbing to 12th from 14th the previous year, as it continued to attack Gaza and was engaged in conflict with the Hezbollah militant group in southern Lebanon.
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8 hours ago
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In February 2025, the United States similarly canceled the visas of Costa Rican legislators Johanna Obando and Cynthia Cordoba, both of whom are alleged to be associated with influence peddling by the China-based telecommunications company Huawei. Following the cancellation of Obando and Cordoba's visas, at the request of the Chinese Ambassador Wang Xiaoyao, Arias convened a session in the Costa Rican legislature with opposition politicians and Qiu Xiaoqi, the head of Latin American Affairs for China's Foreign Ministry. Adding to the provocation, Arias later invited Wang and a delegation from Beijing to Ingenio Taboga, a ranch in Guanacaste in which his family has an interest, to praise China and talk about ways to expand cooperation with Costa Rica in various water projects. If the message sent to Costa Rica by the visa cancellations was ambiguous, due to the lack of an official explanation, a February 2025 visit to Costa Rica by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio provided more clarity. Rubio expressed the U.S. government's concerns over China's activities in the region, and praised the Costa Rican government's decision to exclude Chinese vendors from its 5G digital infrastructure. The U.S. had also previously canceled the visas of representatives of the Costa Rican telecommunication organization ICE and its principal trade union over irregular Huawei lobbying, which had included a lavish 2024 party thrown by Huawei in the Hilton La Sabana. Evolution of the China-Costa Rica Relationship Costa Rica's experience with China and Chinese companies since President Arias switched relations from Taiwan in May 2007 has arguably fallen short of expectations and been filled with frustration on both sides. China initiated its relationship with the Arias government in 2007 with gifts and other promised benefits totaling an estimated $430 million. These included construction of a $100 million national stadium and the purchase of $300 million in Costa Rican government bonds. Despite the initial display of goodwill, the Chinese approach to doing business quickly came into conflict with Costa Rican laws and institutions. The company building the national stadium, Anhui Foreign Economic Construction Group Co., Ltd., improperly sought to use the equipment that had been imported duty-free for the construction to make money on side projects. The proposed construction of the Soresco petroleum refinery fell apart in 2016 when China National Petroleum Company repeatedly sought to use its own subsidiary to perform the independent evaluation that the Costa Rican government required before committing its own money and taking the project forward. 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On the trade side, Costa Rican hopes of increasing exports to China through the change in diplomatic recognition failed to materialize – despite the subsequent negotiation of a free trade agreement that went into effect in August 2011. However, those actions contributed to a significant expansion of Chinese products and retail outlets in the country at the expense of local businesses. As a result, an enormous trade deficit has accrued to the benefit of China. In 2023, Costa Rica imported $3.39 billion in goods from China, while exporting only $402.7 million to it. In 2012, China sought to expand its commercial presence in Costa Rica through six proposed special economic zones. 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The Chinese have also proposed a 39 kilometer long monorail to be built and financed by China-based companies. Chinese firms are reportedly also interested in operating a port facility at Caldera, although there has not yet been a formal bidding process. In telecommunications, Huawei continues to fight against its exclusion from the Costa Rican telecom market. Its efforts include its previously noted attempts to court members of ICE, its principal union, and Costa Rican legislators, including lavish parties in the Sabana Hilton, arguably facilitating the suspension of U.S. visas over those involved in such improper interactions. Despite the exclusion of Huawei from Costa Rica's 5G network, its equipment has penetrated government and private sector digital infrastructures. ICE, for example, uses Huawei routers, while Telecable and Claro have Huawei modems. Chinese smartphones, including Huawei, Xiaomi, and the new low-end device company Honor, are widely used in the country. 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Similarly, in November 2023, a Costa Rican journalist from Grupo R Multimedia participated in an event in China sponsored by the China-Latin America Press Center. Conclusion Costa Rica is an example, repeated in other countries in the region such as Nicaragua and Honduras, of how hoped for commercial gains from diplomatic flips from Taiwan to China, and the signing of associated MOUs and free trade agreements, often fail to materialize. Instead, such initiatives may expose local commercial actors to damaging penetration from Chinese goods and companies, and introduce Chinese influence networks into vulnerable local political, business, academic and media environments. At the same time, Costa Rica is also an example of how strong institutions and democratic culture can help a country to resist such risks, even while recognizing that the requirement for vigilance is ongoing.
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