In 2025, Russia’s year-on-year military spending increased by 5.9%, to the equivalent of $190 billion, according to a report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute released on April 27. SIPRI said the burden on Russia’s budget remains high, at about 7.5% of GDP and 20% of all state spending.
Russia ranked third in military spending globally, behind the United States and China, which spent $954 billion and $336 billion, respectively. U.S. spending fell by 7.5%, a drop analysts linked to the absence of new financial aid packages for Ukraine. They expect U.S. defense spending to rise in the future. China, meanwhile, increased spending by 7.4%, continuing a growth pattern that has lasted more than three decades.
Ukraine ranked seventh last year amid the ongoing Russian invasion, with $84.1 billion in military spending — a 20% year-on-year increase bringing the total to 40% of the country’s GDP.
Combined military spending by all countries tracked by SIPRI rose by 2.9%, exceeding $2.8 trillion. SIPRI said the main driver of the growth was European NATO members. Germany led among them, ranking fourth worldwide with $114 billion in spending, up 24%. Spain’s spending jumped 50% to $40.2 billion.
However, as SIPRI senior researcher Diego Lopes da Silva noted, traditional U.S. allies around the world showed a similar trend:
“U.S. allies in Asia and Oceania such as Australia, Japan, and the Philippines are spending more on their militaries, not only due to long-standing regional tensions but also due to growing uncertainty over U.S. support. As in Europe, U.S. allies in Asia and Oceania are also under pressure from the Trump administration to spend more on their militaries.”
Despite active regional conflicts, countries in the Middle East kept spending stable, with total expenditures coming in at an estimated $218 billion in 2025, just 0.1% higher than in 2024. Israel and Iran actually spent 4.9% and 5.6% less on defense than in the previous year, respectively, while most neighboring countries increased their spending.
“Despite the recent conflicts, Iran’s military spending decreased in real terms due to economic difficulties. However, official figures almost certainly understate the true level of Iran’s spending — Iran also uses off-budget oil revenues to finance its military, including the production of missiles and drones,” commented Zubaida Karim, a researcher with the SIPRI Military Expenditure and Arms Production Programme.
