Global military spending rises despite Covid-19 pandemic

STOCKHOLM • Military expenditure worldwide rose to nearly US$2 trillion (S$2.6 trillion) last year, defying the economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, researchers said yesterday.

Global military spending increased by 2.6 per cent to US$1,981 billion last year, when global gross domestic product (GDP) shrank 4.4 per cent, according to a report from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (Sipri).

Mr Diego Lopes da Silva, one of the report's authors, said the development was unexpected. "Because of the pandemic, one would think military spending would decrease," he said. "But it's possible to conclude with some certainty that Covid-19 did not have a significant impact on global military spending, in 2020 at least."

He cautioned, however, that due to the nature of military spending, it could take time for countries "to adapt to the shock".

The fact that military spending continued to rise in a year with an economic downturn meant the "military burden", or the share of military spending out of total GDP, had increased as well.

The overall share rose from 2.2 per cent to 2.4 per cent, the largest year-on-year increase since the financial crisis of 2009.

As a result, more Nato members hit the alliance's guideline target of spending at least 2 per cent of GDP on their military, with 12 countries doing so last year compared with nine in 2019.

There were, however, indications the pandemic had affected some countries. Nations such as Chile and South Korea openly decided to re-appropriate military funds in response to the pandemic.

"Other countries, such as Brazil and Russia, did not explicitly say this was reallocated because of the pandemic, but they have spent considerably less than their original budget for 2020," Mr Lopes da Silva said.

Another response, as in Hungary for example, was to raise military spending "as part of a stimulus package in response to the pandemic".

Mr Lopes da Silva noted that many countries responded to the 2008-2009 financial crisis by adopting austerity measures, but "this time around it might not be the case".

The world's two biggest spenders by far were the United States and China, with Washington accounting for 39 per cent of overall expenditure and Beijing 13 per cent.

China's military spending has risen in tandem with its growing economy and has seen an increase for 26 consecutive years, reaching an estimated US$252 billion last year.

The US increased its spending for the third year in a row in 2020, after seven years of reductions. "This reflects growing concerns over perceived threats from strategic competitors such as China and Russia, as well as the Trump administration's drive to bolster what it saw as a depleted US military," Ms Alexandra Marksteiner, another author of the report, said in a statement.

Mr Lopes da Silva noted that the new "Biden administration has not given any indications that it will reduce military spending".

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE