The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (Ican) has reported that expenditure on nuclear weaponry globally has soared by 13% to hit a record high of €85bn (£73.6bn) in 2023. This staggering sum, an upturn of $10.7bn from the preceding year, has been largely fuelled by significant increases in American defence budgets during a period of intense geopolitical instability brought about by conflicts such as the Hamas-Israel war and Russia’s violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty.
Ican’s data indicates that the fiscal commitments to nuclear armaments by all nine of the world’s nuclear-enabled nations have increased. China ranks as the second major spender with a budget allocation of $11.9bn, despite being far behind the enormous figure of $51.5bn assigned by the United States. Russia is adjudged the third biggest spender at $8.3bn, ahead of the UK ($8.1bn), and France ($6.1bn). However, it’s difficult to determine exact numbers for nations under autocratic rule or those who have not openly acknowledged their nuclear programmes, such as India, Pakistan and Israel, due to their lack of financial transparency.
Susy Snyder, one of the authors of the Ican’s research, has expressed concern that annual expenditure on nuclear weapons by these states could reach $100bn if current trends continue. She advocates for these funds to be utilised for environmental and societal initiatives instead. Ms Snyder argued that such vast amounts could be harnessed to tackle climate change, safeguard flora and fauna from extinction, and improve health and education services globally.
Over the previous half-decade, since Ican initiated its studies, spending on nuclear weapons has rocketed by 34%, or $23.2bn. The US saw an increase of 45% in its expenditure, while the UK witnessed a rise of 43%. If these trends persist, the total expenditure is projected to exceed $100bn by 2024.
In the face of these developments, Russian President Vladimir Putin continues to flaunt his nation’s nuclear prowess, issuing cautionary remarks to the West regarding potential military interferences with the Ukraine conflict, which Russia initiated in February 2022. Russia has also staged several exercises near the Ukrainian border, simulating the employment of tactical nuclear weapons.
The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute has gathered data indicating a slight rise in the count of active nuclear warheads, totalling 9,585. This upsurge is primarily a result of China enlarging its arsenal from 410 to 500. Since the mid-20th century, the United States and Russia have consistently held their positions as the largest nuclear powers, owning roughly 90% of all warheads. The research denotes that Russia boasts 4,380 nuclear warheads, either deployed or stockpiled, while the United States houses 3,708. This was reported by The Guardian.