Due to the Russian war of aggression, Ukraine jumps into the top 3 of the world‘s arms importers. But the European NATO countries are also arming themselves massively: imports of heavy weapons increased by 65 percent from 2018 to 2022.
Dhe Ukraine has become one of the world‘s largest importers of armaments within a year as a result of the Russian war of aggression. Few heavy weapons have been imported from abroad since the former Soviet republic gained independence in 1991, but last year military aid from the US and Europe made Ukraine the third-largest arms importer. That comes from one Message emerged, which the peace research institute Sipri from Stockholm published on Monday. Only Qatar and India are ahead of Ukraine.
In the period 2018-2022, Ukraine ranks 14th with a share of 2.0 percent in the volume of global arms imports. Its main suppliers were the USA, Poland and Germany. The supplies were vital to efforts to halt the Russian offensive, Sipri wrote. Russia, on the other hand, relied almost exclusively on weapons it had manufactured itself, but also procured unmanned aerial vehicles and flying bombs from Iran.
The turning point triggered by the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine is also having a full impact on the arms market in other European countries. Imports of heavy weapons such as tanks, fighter jets and submarines to Europe have increased by 47 percent over the past two five-year periods – the European NATO countries by as much as 65 percent.
“European countries want to import more weapons – and faster”
In contrast, the volume of arms deliveries between countries worldwide fell by 5.1 percent. The USA remains the industry leader, Germany remains one of the five largest suppliers. Sipri researcher Pieter Wezeman said: “Even if arms transfers have declined worldwide, those to Europe have increased sharply due to tensions between Russia and most other European states. After Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, European countries want to import more weapons – and faster.”
According to the report, more than half (56 percent) of the weapons purchased by these states come from the USA and 5.1 percent from Germany. The Ukraine suddenly became one of the largest buyers: Since gaining independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, it had hardly imported any heavy weapons.
“Before 2022, there were hardly any arms deliveries to Ukraine. They were at a very low level – especially considering their size and the fact that they have been at war since 2014,” Wezeman told the German Press Agency. This is the one part that has changed significantly. “The other part is that over the past decade, especially since 2014, European countries have responded significantly to what they see as a hugely increased threat from Russia.” Increasing demand from most European countries is likely to drive down import numbers in the coming years probably have a much stronger impact.
The US and Russia have been the world‘s dominant arms suppliers for decades. But the gap between them is growing: While the USA is still number one among exporters with a share of 40 percent, Russia’s share has fallen significantly to 16 percent. France is number three with strong gains to 11 percent. The armaments industry there also has significantly more outstanding major orders than Russia. That is why Sipri does not consider it impossible that France will overtake Russia
Russia exports fewer arms
The volume of Russian arms exports fell by 31 percent when comparing the periods 2013-2017 and 2018-2022, particularly sharply in the past three years. The researchers believe that this trend will continue because of the Ukraine war: Russia’s armed forces need the weapons themselves. In addition, demand from other countries is likely to remain low because of the sanctions against Russia and the increasing pressure from the West on these states.
The five largest export countries are completed by China and Germany. According to the report, the German export volume fell by 35 percent in a five-year comparison. The Federal Republic thus had a 4.2 percent share of global exports (previously: 6.1 percent). Countries in the Middle East were the largest buyers of German armaments.
“In Germany we have seen such fluctuations before. This is often related to a relatively small number of major naval equipment orders, particularly for submarines and frigates,” Wezeman said. There have been delays in several major projects, such as submarine deliveries to Turkey, Israel and Singapore. “Based on this, it would not be surprising if German arms exports increased again.”
The Sipri data refers to the volume of arms deliveries, not their financial value. The independent institute is concerned with long-term global trends: Since the volume can vary greatly from year to year depending on the order situation, the peace researchers focus on five-year periods instead of individual years. This time they made an exception for the Ukraine due to the war.