Global Arms Sales Hit Highest Level Since End of Cold War
- With eye on China, India remains world’s largest arms importer
- U.S., Russia combined supply 56% of defense exports: report
An Indian Army personnel looks through the barrel of a rocket launcher.
Photographer: Noah Seelam/AFP via Getty ImagesThis article is for subscribers only.
Global arms sales over the last five years reached their highest level since 1990, with India continuing to top the charts as the world’s largest defense importer, a report from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute has found.
Between 2012 and 2016, India accounted for 13 percent of global arms imports, followed by Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, China and Algeria, said SIPRI, which tracks global arms purchases. Between 2007 and 2011, India accounted for 9.7 percent of global imports, still more than any other country, the group’s data shows.