Whether it’s fight or flight, there’s a natural tendency of humans to want to protect themselves. In this day and age, this base instinct takes the form of a nation’s expenditures on armies and armaments, towards an end goal of global security and peacekeeping. The world’s military spending grew by 3.6% year-over-year (YoY)—currently the highest rate this decade—to surpass $1.9 trillion. While just 10 countries are responsible for nearly 75% of this amount, the U.S. alone made up the lion’s share with 38% of the global total. In fact, its YoY rise in spending alone of $49.2 billion rivals Germany’s entire spending for the same year. China and India, currently embroiled in a border dispute, have upped the ante for military spending in Asia. India is also facing cross-border terrorism from Pakistan though the two countries have recently agreed to maintain a ceasefire at the borders. Global think-tank Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) has recently released the list of countries with maximum military spendings in the year 2020. Here are the top 10 countries that figure in the SIPRI list:
1. USA ($778 billion): In 2020 US military expenditure reached an estimated $778 billion, representing an increase of 4.4 per cent over 2019. As the world’s largest military spender, the USA accounted for 39 per cent of total military expenditure in 2020.
2. China ($252 billion): China’s military expenditure, the second-highest in the world, is estimated to have totalled $252 billion in 2020. This represents an increase of 1.9 per cent over 2019 and 76 per cent over the decade 2011–20.
3. India ($72.9 billion): took the third rank with total spending on defence going up to $72.9 billion. India accounted for 9.5% of the total global arms imports during 2016-2020.
4. Russia ($61.7 billion): On fourth, Russia’s military expenditure increased by 2.5 per cent in 2020 to reach $61.7 billion. This was the second consecutive year of growth. Nevertheless, Russia’s actual military spending in 2020 was 6.6 per cent lower than its initial military budget, a larger shortfall than in previous years.
5. UK ($59.2 billion): With a total of $59.2 billion, the UK became the fifth largest spender in 2020. The UK’s military spending was 2.9 per cent higher than in 2019 but 4.2 per cent lower than in 2011.
6. Saudi Arabia ($57.5 billion): With the biggest increases in the military burden among the top 15 spenders in 2020 (+0.6 percentage points) and an estimated allocation of $57.5 billion, it took the sixth spot in defence spending worldwide.
7. Germany ($52.8 billion): Germany increased its spending by 5.2 per cent to $52.8 billion, making it the seventh-largest spender in 2020. Germany’s military expenditure was 28 per cent higher than in 2011. Military spending across Europe rose by 4.0 per cent in 2020.
8. France ($52.7 billion): Slipping down one position from 2019, France spent a total of $52.7 billion on its defence. The 8th biggest spender globally passed the 2 per cent threshold for the first time since 2009.
9. Japan ($49.1 billion): Even though being one of the smallest countries on the list, Japan kept its previous ranking of 9th with $49.1 billion in defence allocation in 2020.
10. South Korea ($45.7 billion): Another small east Asian country with a vast expenditure on defence, South Korea stood at tenth rank with $45.7 billion defence spending.
