NEW DELHI: India is the fifth-largest military spender globally, spending almost nine times more than Pakistan. But it also has to contend with China, another nuclear-armed neighbour which spends almost four times more.
With the global military expenditure registering the steepest year-on-year increase since the end of the Cold War to reach a record $2,718 billion due to ongoing conflicts and geopolitical turmoil, India is ranked after the US, China, Russia and Germany.
The global military expenditure increased by 9.4% in real terms in 2024, with the top five spenders accounting for 60% of the total with a combined spending of $1,635 billion, as per the latest data released by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) on Monday.
The report comes at a time when the ceasefire along the Line of Control with Pakistan has frayed after the Pahalgam terror massacre, while China continues with its forward deployment of over 100,000 troops along the Line of Actual Control though disengagement has taken place in eastern Ladakh.
"India is probably the only country with two active and long unresolved borders with nuclear-armed neighbours. We must cater for both," a senior Indian military officer told TOI.
SIPRI said the 10 largest military spenders are US ($997 billion), China ($314 billion), Russia ($149 billion), Germany ($88 billion), India ($86 billion), UK ($82 billion), Saudi Arabia ($80 billion), Ukraine ($65 billion), France ($65 billion) and Japan ($55 billion). Pakistan was placed at the 29th spot with $10bn.
India may be a big military spender but somewhat flounders in getting the biggest bang for its buck despite the two-front challenge. Just around 22% of the Rs 6.8 lakh crore ($80 billion) annual defence budget for 2025-26, for instance, is earmarked for capital procurements of new weapon systems and platforms. The rest is gobbled up by salaries and day-to-day operational costs for the 1.4-million-strong armed forces as well as the huge pension bill for over 3.4 million ex-servicemen and defence civilians.
India spends just 1.9% of its GDP on defence when at least 2.5% is needed to effectively deal with the collusive threat from China and Pakistan. Apart from the relatively weak defence-industrial base, which makes India the second largest arms importer in the world, another major problem is the relative absence of concrete long-term plans to systematically build military capabilities in tune with the country's geopolitical aspirations.
Consequently, the armed forces continue to grapple with major operational shortages on several fronts, ranging from fighters, submarines and helicopters to air defence systems, anti-tank guided missiles and night-fighting capabilities.
China is rapidly modernizing its two-million-strong military across the traditional domains of land, air and sea as well as nuclear, space and cyber, recording its 30th consecutive year-on-year hike in its official military budget, which experts say is far less than what it actually spends. Pakistan also is no pushover.
"China, the world's second-largest military spender, allocated an estimated $314 billion to its military in 2024, up by 7% from 2023. This was the largest year-on-year percentage increase in China's military spending since 2015," SIPRI said.
China "unveiled" several improved military capabilities in 2024, including new stealth combat aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and uncrewed underwater vehicles. "China also continued to rapidly expand its nuclear arsenal in 2024 and moved to strengthen certain types of counter-space and cyberwarfare capabilities. It established separate aerospace and cyberspace forces in 2024," it added.
With the global military expenditure registering the steepest year-on-year increase since the end of the Cold War to reach a record $2,718 billion due to ongoing conflicts and geopolitical turmoil, India is ranked after the US, China, Russia and Germany.
The global military expenditure increased by 9.4% in real terms in 2024, with the top five spenders accounting for 60% of the total with a combined spending of $1,635 billion, as per the latest data released by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) on Monday.
The report comes at a time when the ceasefire along the Line of Control with Pakistan has frayed after the Pahalgam terror massacre, while China continues with its forward deployment of over 100,000 troops along the Line of Actual Control though disengagement has taken place in eastern Ladakh.
"India is probably the only country with two active and long unresolved borders with nuclear-armed neighbours. We must cater for both," a senior Indian military officer told TOI.
SIPRI said the 10 largest military spenders are US ($997 billion), China ($314 billion), Russia ($149 billion), Germany ($88 billion), India ($86 billion), UK ($82 billion), Saudi Arabia ($80 billion), Ukraine ($65 billion), France ($65 billion) and Japan ($55 billion). Pakistan was placed at the 29th spot with $10bn.
India may be a big military spender but somewhat flounders in getting the biggest bang for its buck despite the two-front challenge. Just around 22% of the Rs 6.8 lakh crore ($80 billion) annual defence budget for 2025-26, for instance, is earmarked for capital procurements of new weapon systems and platforms. The rest is gobbled up by salaries and day-to-day operational costs for the 1.4-million-strong armed forces as well as the huge pension bill for over 3.4 million ex-servicemen and defence civilians.
India spends just 1.9% of its GDP on defence when at least 2.5% is needed to effectively deal with the collusive threat from China and Pakistan. Apart from the relatively weak defence-industrial base, which makes India the second largest arms importer in the world, another major problem is the relative absence of concrete long-term plans to systematically build military capabilities in tune with the country's geopolitical aspirations.
Consequently, the armed forces continue to grapple with major operational shortages on several fronts, ranging from fighters, submarines and helicopters to air defence systems, anti-tank guided missiles and night-fighting capabilities.
China is rapidly modernizing its two-million-strong military across the traditional domains of land, air and sea as well as nuclear, space and cyber, recording its 30th consecutive year-on-year hike in its official military budget, which experts say is far less than what it actually spends. Pakistan also is no pushover.
"China, the world's second-largest military spender, allocated an estimated $314 billion to its military in 2024, up by 7% from 2023. This was the largest year-on-year percentage increase in China's military spending since 2015," SIPRI said.
China "unveiled" several improved military capabilities in 2024, including new stealth combat aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and uncrewed underwater vehicles. "China also continued to rapidly expand its nuclear arsenal in 2024 and moved to strengthen certain types of counter-space and cyberwarfare capabilities. It established separate aerospace and cyberspace forces in 2024," it added.
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