India fourth-largest military spender, overall global spending accelerates: SIPRI report

India was the fourth largest military spender globally in 2023, a leading conflict think-tank said on Monday. At $83.6 billion, the country’s military expenditure was 4.2 per cent higher than in 2022.

Meanwhile, global military expenditure rose by 7 per cent to $2,443 billion in 2023, the steepest annual rise since 2009, said the latest report by Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).

As per the report, the 10 largest spenders in 2023, led by the United States, China and Russia, all increased their military spending.


Nan Tian, Senior Researcher at SIPRI's Military Expenditure and Arms Production Programme, said the increase was a direct response to a global deterioration in peace and security.

"States are prioritising military strength but they risk an action-reaction spiral in the increasingly volatile geopolitical and security landscape," Tian said.

The percentage change was expressed in real terms, in constant 2022 prices, SIPRI added.

The largest percentage increase in military spending by any country in 2023 was seen in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (+105 per cent), where there has been protracted conflict between the government and non-state armed groups. South Sudan recorded the second largest percentage increase (+78 per cent) amid internal violence and spillover from the Sudanese civil war, the report says.