East Asia joins global military spending surge over China concerns: report
- Swedish think tank finds regional expenditure on armed forces rises at its highest rate in a decade
- Military budgets have climbed worldwide in an ‘increasingly volatile geopolitical and security landscape’
Global military expenditure recorded its steepest rise in 15 years amid ongoing wars in Europe and the Middle East, while East Asia saw the largest defence spending in a decade – coinciding with tensions over Taiwan, according to a Swedish think tank.
In a report released on Monday, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (Sipri) said military expenditure in East Asia grew by 6.2 per cent in 2023 to reach US$411 billion, the sharpest increase in 10 years.
“Many of its neighbours perceive China’s growing military power as a reason to enhance their own military capabilities,” the institute said in its “Trends in World Military Expenditure, 2023” report.
Beijing allocated an estimated US$296 billion to the military in 2023, remaining the world’s second-biggest military spender after the United States, which spent US$916 billion.
02:17
China airs footage of Fujian aircraft carrier featuring advanced catapult launch system