My key takeaways: 1. Total global military expenditure increased by 0.7 per cent in real terms in 2021, to reach $2113 billion 2. In nominal terms, however, m

My key takeaways: 1. Total global military expenditure increased by 0.7 per cent in real terms in 2021, to reach $2113 billion 2. In nominal terms, however, military spending grew by 6.1 per cent. 3. As a result of a sharp economic recovery in 2021, the global military burden—world military expenditure as a share of world gross domestic product (GDP)—fell by 0.1 percentage points, from 2.3 per cent in 2020 to 2.2 per cent in 2021 4. ‘The US Government has repeatedly stressed the need to preserve the US military’s technological edge over strategic competitors.’ Russia increases military budget in run-up to war Russia increased its military expenditure by 2.9 per cent in 2021, to $65.9 billion, at a time when it was building up its forces along the Ukrainian border 5. Military expenditure refers to all government spending on current military forces and activities, including salaries and benefits, operational expenses, arms and equipment purchases, military construction, research and development, and central administration, command and support 6. The five largest spenders in 2021 were the United States, China, India, the United Kingdom and Russia, together accounting for 62 per cent of expenditure, according to new data on global military spending published today by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) 7. Germany—the third largest spender in Central and Western Europe—spent $56.0 billion on its military in 2021, or 1.3 per cent of its GDP 8. United States focuses on military research and development US military spending amounted to $801 billion in 2021, a drop of 1.4 per cent from 2020 9. US funding for military research and development (R&D) rose by 24 per cent between 2012 and 2021, while arms procurement funding fell by 6.4 per cent over the same period