SIPRI Arms Trade Report

This month the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) released their annual update on international arms transfers.

The data revealed that imports of major arms by European states increased by 47 per cent between 2013–17 and 2018–22, while the global level of international arms transfers decreased by 5.1 per cent. Arms imports fell overall in Africa (–40 per cent), the Americas (–21 per cent), Asia and Oceania (–7.5 per cent) and the Middle East (–8.8 per cent)—but imports to East Asia and certain states in other areas of high geopolitical tension rose sharply.

The United States’ share of global arms exports increased from 33 to 40 per cent while Russia’s fell from 22 to 16 per cent. [Fact Sheet]

“Even as arms transfers have declined globally, those to Europe have risen sharply due to the tensions between Russia and most other European states,’ said Pieter D. Wezeman, Senior Researcher with the SIPRI Arms Transfers Program. “Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, European states want to import more arms, faster. Strategic competition also continues elsewhere: arms imports to East Asia have increased and those to the Middle East remain at a high level.”

“France is gaining a bigger share of the global arms market as Russian arms exports decline, as seen in India, for example,’ said Mr. Wezeman, “This seems likely to continue, as by the end of 2022, France had far more outstanding orders for arms exports than Russia.”

India remains the world’s top arms importer, but its arms imports declined by 11 per cent between 2013–17 and 2018–22. This decline was linked to a complex procurement process, efforts to diversify arms suppliers and attempts to replace imports with local designs. Imports by Pakistan, the world’s eighth largest arms importer in 2018–22, increased by 14 per cent, with China as its main supplier.