Europe picks up more arms even as global weapon imports drop, The Hindu Editorial Analysis

The Hindu Editorial Analysis: The editorial analysis of The Hindu Newspaper Editorial Articles aimed at simplifying various concepts relevant to the UPSC and other State PSC Exams. The Editorial Analysis helps in expanding the knowledge base as well as framing better quality mains answers. Today’s Hindu Editorial Analysis discusses recently released the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) report 2023 on arms trade among various countries of the world.

SIPRI Report on Arms Trade in News

Recently released SIPRI Report on Arms Trade highlighted that European countries increased their imports of major weaponry by 47% between 2013-17 and 2018-2022. This rise is significant as the global volume of international arms transfers fell by 5.1%.

Reasons for Increased Import by European Counties

The increase in arms imports was 65% in the between 2013-17 and 2018-2022 If we only those European states which are part of the U.S.-led NATO alliance.

• Mains reason for Increased import of arms is Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year which has prompted European countries to rush to bolster their defenses.
• SIPRI representative said that Even as arms transfers have declined globally, those to Europe have risen sharply due to the tensions between Russia and most other European states.
• SIPRI defines major arms as aircraft, warships, tanks, artillery, missiles and various heavy defence systems.

Arms Import in Europe

The arms imports in 2018-2022 is the highest in many European countries such as the Netherlands, Norway, Denmark, France, Belgium, Serbia, Belarus and Lithuania across all periods considered in the SIPRI Report.

• In other European nations such as the U.K., Poland, Romania, Germany and Sweden, arms imports in the 2018-2022 period are at least higher than the previous five-year period (2013-2017).
• A sharp spike in Ukraine’s arms imports in latest period from the U.S. and Europe is also visible in the latest SIPRI Report.
• With this, Ukraine became the world’s third largest importer of arms in 2022.
• Notably, Ukraine imported fewer major arms from 1991, when Ukraine became independent amid the fall of the Soviet Union, until the end of 2021.

Global Arms Trade Status, SIPRI Report

A significant increase was visible in Europe’s share in global volume of arms transfers. However, the SIPRI Report Data shows that the share of West Asia, Americas and Asia and Oceania have declined marginally in the last five years.

• Africa’s share in the total global imports of Arms have decreased significantly in 2018-22 period.
• As per SIPRI’s data, 14% increase was visible in U.S. arms exports between 2013–17 and 2018–22. Washington accounted for 40% of global arms exports in 2018-22.
• Russia’s arms exports decreased by 31% between 2013–17 and 2018–22. Russia’s share of global arms exports also decreased from 22% to 16%, while France’s share increased from 7.1% to 11%.

Shifting Dynamics of Global Arms Trade

The export of arms has long been dominated by the U.S. and Russia with the two countries being the largest and second-largest arms exporters for the past three decades.

• However, the gap between USA and Russia has been widening significantly.
• On the contrary, the gap between Russia and the third-largest arms supplier, France, has narrowed in the same period.
• The SIPRI Report also highlighted that the invasion of Ukraine may further limit Russia’s arms exports due to-
  • Moscow’s need to prioritise supplying its own armed forces and
  • Low demand from other states due to trade sanctions.

Key Points about SIPRI

SIPRI is an international research organization established in 1966. SIPRI is an independent international institute dedicated to research of conflict, armaments, arms control and disarmament.

What is SIPRI’s Trend Indicator Values (TIVs)?

The SIPRI TIV is a measure of the volume of international transfers of major arms. The SIPRI’s TIV is based on the known unit production costs of a core set of weapons. It is intended to represent the transfer of military resources rather than the financial value of the transfer. This data is intended to provide a common unit to allow the measurement of trends in the flow of arms to particular countries and regions over time.

Global Arms Trade FAQs

1. What is SIPRI?

Ans. The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) report is an independent international institute dedicated to research of conflict, armaments, arms control and disarmament.

2. Which are the top two arm exporter countries in the World?

Ans. The export of arms has long been dominated by the U.S. and Russia with the two countries being the largest and second-largest arms exporters for the past three decades.

Highest Ever Defence Export from India

Highest Ever Defence Export from India

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