World military spending reaches new record $2.24 trillion driven mainly by a 13% increase in investment in Europe as Russia’s military offensive in Ukraine led to numbers they had not seen each other since at least the Cold War.

This is what it looks like in the annual report prepared by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), which says that in the case of Russia, military spending grew by 9.2 percent in 2022, up to 86 thousand 400 million dollars. Figures released at the end of the year already suggested a 34 percent increase over budgets proposed in 2021.

According to Lucie Bero-Sudro, director of the SIPRI Military Expenditure and Arms Production Program, “the difference between Russia’s budgetary plans and its actual military spending in 2022 suggests that the invasion of Ukraine it cost Russia much more than I expected.”

In the case of Ukraine, the costs reached $44 billion. equals one 640 percent growthunprecedented growth for a single country in the entire history of SIPRI and assuming a rise in the military burden on GDP to 34 percent— before the invasion was only 3.2 percent—.

The Institute also ranks among the countries with the most pronounced growth in spending on various near the borders of Russia and Ukraine: Finland (+36%), Lithuania (+27%), Sweden (+12%) and Poland (+11%). In general terms, the military spending of the countries of Central and Western Europe in 2022 amounted to 345 billion dollars, which in real terms implies an excess of 1989 figures for the first time.

Military spending by NATO member countries $1.232 trillion in 20220.9 percent more than in 2021.

Countries that spent the most

Russia remains in the top three countries with the highest defense spending in the world, along with the US and China. Only this trio monopolizes 56 percent of spendingWith USA is back in the leadthanks to its $877 billion, which is 39 percent of the world’s military spending.

A 0.7% increase in US spending in real terms would be even higher. If not for high inflationaccording to SIPRI, which also notes in the case of the North American country the consequences of the war in Ukraine, in particular the assistance provided to Kyiv— 19 thousand 900 million dollars— face the challenges of Russia.

China remained the second highest military spending country in the world in 2022: about $292 billion, up 4.2 percent. Asian giant saved uptrend for 28 years, while data from neighboring Japan is also rising, hitting $46,000 million after allocating a 5.9 percent increase.

In fourth place is Indiawhich increased its spending by 6 percent to $81,400 million, and Saudi Arabia It is in fifth place, up 16 percent to $75 billion. In the case of Saudi Arabia, this is the first increase since 2018.