European states’ arms imports rise by 47%, US dominates exports market: Report

Even though global arms transfer fell by 5 per cent in the past five years, European states bolstered their armory, with their imports of major weapons surging by 47 per cent, a study by a leading think tank showed.

According to the report by Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), in the past five years till 2022, European states in the NATO-led alliance rushed to fortify their defence capabilities—a move prompted by growing geo-political tensions and the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

SIPRI defines major arms as aircraft, warships, tanks, artillery, missiles and various heavy defence systems.

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“Even as arms transfers have declined globally, those to Europe have risen sharply due to the tensions between Russia and most other European states,” Pieter D. Wezeman, Senior Researcher with the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), said in a statement.

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At the same time, the report noted that United States’ share of global arms exports rose to 40 per cent from 33 per cent. While Russia’s share fell to 16 per cent from 22 per cent.

US and Russia are the world’s largest and second-largest arms exporters, respectively, for the past three decades.

SPRI’s report estimates that Russia’s arms exports will further fall in the coming months as it is fully engaged in the war with Ukraine, reports Reuters news agency.

“It is likely that the invasion of Ukraine will further limit Russia’s arms exports,” SIPRI’s Siemon T Wezeman said. “This is because Russia will prioritize supplying its armed forces and demand from other states will remain low due to trade sanctions on Russia.”

In 2022, SIPRI warned that the global nuclear arsenal was likely to grow in the coming years.

(With inputs from agencies)

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