New Delhi: China increased its military expenditure at a much faster rate than India in 2018, widening the difference between the two countries on defence to whopping over $180 billion.
China, the second-largest defence spender in the world, increased its military expenditure by 5 per cent to $ 250 billion in 2018, according to data from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). In contrast, India increased its military spending in 2018 by 3.1 per cent to $ 66.5 billion. However, India was the fourth-largest spender on military in 2018.
India’s military expenditure rose by 29 per cent over the decade 2009-18.
“India’s military burden in 2018 was at one of its lowest levels since the early 1960s: 2.4 per cent of GDP compared with 2.9 per cent in 2009,” said SIPRI. It said that increases in Indian military expenditure are largely motivated by tensions and rivalry with Pakistan and China. This was the 24th consecutive year of increase in Chinese military expenditure. Its spending in 2018 was almost 10 times higher than in 1994, and accounted for 14 per cent of world military spending. However, growth of 5 per cent in 2018 by China was the lowest annual increase since 1995. China has followed a policy of linking growth in military spending with economic growth. With its economic growth slowing in 2018 to the lowest level in 28 years, slower rates of growth in the coming years can be expected if China continues to follow this policy.
Pakistan’s military spending in 2018 was $11.4 billion, making it the 20th-largest spender globally. Pakistan’s military spending has increased every year since 2009.
It rose by 73 per cent between 2009 and 2018 and by 11 per cent between 2017 and 2018. Pakistan’s military burden in 2018 was 4 per cent of GDP-the highest level since 2004.
The five biggest spenders in 2018 were the United States, China, Saudi Arabia, India and France, which together accounted for 60 per cent of global military spending.
US military spending grew-for the first time since 2010-by 4.6 per cent, to reach $649 billion in 2018. The USA remained by far the largest spender in the world, and spent almost as much on its military in 2018 as the next eight largest-spending countries combined.
In 2018 the USA and China accounted for half of the world’s military spending.
