Trends in International Arms Transfers, 2023

The period from 2014–18 to 2019–23 saw a significant surge in major arms imports by European states, with a 94% increase, contrasting with a slight global decline of 3.3%. While arms transfers to other regions decreased, Asia, Oceania, and the Middle East remained major importers. The top importers in 2019–23 were mostly from these regions, including India, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar. Ukraine notably became the fourth largest arms importer globally. The United States saw a 17% rise in arms exports, making it the largest arms supplier, while Russia's exports dropped by over half. France surpassed Russia to become the second largest arms supplier. The SIPRI Arms Transfers Database now offers updated data from 1950–2023, replacing previous information. The database uses the SIPRI trend-indicator value (TIV) to measure the volume of international arms transfers. (Word count: 142)