According to SIPRI data, global armament continues unabated. In 2025, global military expenditures rose to $2.887 trillion. While increases in Europe and Asia were notable, a decrease was observed in the USA.
According to data published by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), global military expenditures reached $2.887 trillion in 2025. This figure represents a 2.9 percent real-term increase compared to the previous year, marking the 11th consecutive year of rising global military spending. The ratio of defense expenditures, defined as the global military burden, to global gross domestic product (GDP) increased to 2.5 percent, reaching its highest level since 2009.
Turkey Increases Its Spending by 7 Percent
According to the data, Turkey's military expenditures increased by 7.2 percent, reaching $30.0 billion in 2025. This rise was influenced by the country's ongoing military operations in Iraq, Somalia, and Syria, as well as regional dynamics that increased security priorities. The report evaluates the increase in the defense budget in conjunction with Turkey's efforts to both maintain its cross-border operational capacity and accelerate modernization processes. Despite the increase in spending, Turkey remained in 18th place on the SIPRI list.
Decline in US Spending
According to SIPRI, US military expenditures declined by 7.5 percent in 2025, falling to $954 billion. The primary reason for this decline was the failure to approve new financial military aid packages for Ukraine. Despite this, the US continued its objective of increasing investments in nuclear and conventional capabilities to both maintain its dominance in the Western Hemisphere and strengthen deterrence against China in the Indo-Pacific region.
Officials estimate that the approved budget for 2026 exceeded $1 trillion, and with new plans, this figure could rise to as much as $1.5 trillion in 2027.
Europe Continues Armament
According to the report, Europe was the strongest component of the global increase. Across the continent, military expenditures rose by 14 percent to $864 billion. In the fourth year of the Russia-Ukraine war, both countries continued to increase their spending, which, combined with the rearmament process among European NATO members, resulted in one of the fastest rises in the post-Cold War era.
Russia's military expenditures reached $190 billion, marking a 5.9 percent increase, and the country's military burden rose to 7.5 percent of its GDP. Ukraine's spending increased by 20 percent to $84.1 billion, allocating approximately 40 percent of its economic output to defense.
The total spending of European NATO members reached $559 billion. Germany became the largest spender with a budget of $114 billion, recording a 24 percent increase and reaching a military burden of 2.3 percent for the first time since World War II. In Spain, expenditures increased by 50 percent to $40.2 billion.
Middle East Stagnant, Asia-Pacific Rapidly Rising
In the Middle East, military expenditures showed limited change in 2025, remaining at $218 billion.
Israel's military expenditures decreased by 4.9 percent to $48.3 billion, though this level is still almost double that of 2022. Iran's spending, affected by high inflation, saw a real-term decrease of 5.6 percent, falling to $7.4 billion.
In the Asia and Oceania region, military expenditures increased by 8.1 percent to $681 billion, marking the fastest growth since 2009. China maintained its position as the world's second-largest military power with $336 billion in spending, showing a 7.4 percent increase for the 31st consecutive year.
Japan's military budget increased by 9.7 percent to $62.2 billion, reaching 1.4 percent of its GDP. In Taiwan, expenditures rose by 14 percent to $18.2 billion, amounting to 2.1 percent of its GDP.
SIPRI data reveals that the upward trend in global military expenditures continues, with geopolitical tensions and long-term defense objectives further supporting this trend. According to experts, considering the current crisis environment and countries' security strategies, the rise in military spending is expected to persist in the coming years.
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