US remains top military spender, peace researchers say

Stockholm - The United States kept its spot as the world's largest military spender in 2008 while China jumped to second place, a Swedish-based peace research institute reported Monday. Last year, global military expenditures totalled 1.464 trillion dollars or 217 dollars per capita, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) said, adding that the global increase was 4 per cent in real terms on 2007 and up 45 per cent since 1999. The US had a 41-per-cent share of world military spending or 607 billion dollars in 2008, President George W Bush's last year in office. The conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq fuelled spending that was the highest in the US since World War II, SIPRI said. The US spent 'seven times' more than China, SIPRI researcher Sam Perlo-Freeman said at a presentation of the institute's yearbook. China was estimated to account for almost 6 per cent of global spending or some 85 billion dollars while France, Britain, and Russia each accounted for some 4 per cent, the SIPRI Yearbook said, noting that Japan dropped to seventh place, just behind Germany. In Asia, spending increased in China, India, South Korea and Taiwan while cuts were made in Indonesia, Pakistan and Japan. In the Middle East spending fell slightly in real terms in 2008, SIPRI said. Algeria and Brazil were other countries where spending increased. The institute also reported an increase in combined arms sales from the world's top 100 companies with sales of 347 billion dollars in 2007, the latest year covered by SIPRI. Of the 100 companies, 44 were US-based and accounted for 61 per cent of arms sales, while 32 European companies combined for a 31- per-cent share. Companies in Russia, Japan, Israel, and India had most of the remainder. China was not included in the estimate. Most arms companies were 'relatively unaffected by the global financial crisis' due to rising US expenditure and stable spending in Europe but less access to credit may impact some companies and merger plans, SIPRI said. 'The arms industry, unlike the car industry is dependent on government spending rather than consumer spending,' Perlo-Freeman told the German Press Agency dpa. He added that the arms industry also had a 'cushion,' citing revenues built up along with a backlog of orders and long leadtimes. The US and Russia remained the world's largest arms exporters 2004-2008, accounting for 31 and 25 per cent, respectively. China and India were the world's largest importers although Russian deliveries and orders to China declined in 2007 and 2008. Other big importers included the United Arab Emirates, Greece and South Korea. In its annual outlook, the institute said there were 16 major armed conflicts in 2008, two more than in 2007. Another trend highlighted in the annual report was the increase in recent years of 'one-sided violence' that targets civilians by government forces, militia, rebel forces and others. Conflicts that increased in intensity included Sri Lanka, the Philippines, Peru, Turkey, and Israel, with the ongoing tensions in the Palestinian territories. In 2008, SIPRI registered 60 peacekeeping operations. The NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan was the largest single multilateral operation with over 51,000 troops. There were 19 operations in Africa and Europe, respectively. Lakhdar Brahimi, SIPRI board member and former United Nations representative for Afghanistan and Iraq, said it was 'alarming' that demand for peacekeepers was growing and was not sure the UN could sustain that level. Brahimi also expressed concern about the ongoing peacekeeping operations in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Sudan. According to the yearbook, eight states have almost 8,400 operational nuclear weapons of which some 2,000 were kept at a high level of readiness. However, including weapons in storage, the total number of nuclear weapons was closer to 20,000. SIPRI researchers noted 'a resurgence of interest in nuclear disarmament' last year and various initiatives to reduce nuclear weapons while programmes in North Korea and Iran continued to generate controversy. North Korea's recent underground nuclear test as well as missile tests were signs the country was 'working rather systematically to create both a weapon and also a delivery system for it,' researcher Ian Anthony told dpa, noting that North Korea likely opted for missiles since its neighbours 'all had very effective air defences against aircraft.' In his overview, SIPRI director Bates Gill noted the high expectations pinned on US President Barack Obama, but also expressed fears that continued 'fragmentation of violence in weak states' will cause more suffering for civilians. The Swedish parliament created SIPRI as an independent foundation in 1966.

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SP4: SureJun 8th, 2009 - 14:45:44

...after all, who do you think keeps the peace?

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US remains top military spender, peace researchers say

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