HELSINKI, March 10 (Xinhua) -- European arms imports surged between 2020 and 2024, with most imports coming from the United States, according to a report published by Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) on Monday.
In the period of 2020-2024, affected by the Russia-Ukraine conflict and the uncertainty over the future US foreign policy, Europe's arms imports surged by 155 percent compared with 2015-2019, according to the report.
During this period, European NATO member states' arms imports more than doubled, with the U.S. contributing 64 percent of the weapons, which was much higher than the 52 percent in the previous five years.
The report also pointed out that between 2020 and 2024, Ukraine became the world's largest importer of major arms, with its import volume increasing nearly 100 times.
During this period, Ukraine's arms imports accounted for 8.8 percent of the world's total arms imports. Most of the major weapons supplied to Ukraine came from the U.S., accounting for 45 percent, followed by Germany and Poland, accounting for 12 percent and 11 percent respectively.
From a global perspective, compared with the previous five years, US arms exports increased by 21 percent between 2020 and 2024, providing weapons to 107 countries, with its share in global exports increasing from 35 percent to 43 percent. For the first time, the largest share of US arms exports went to Europe, soaring from 13 percent to 35 percent.
At the same time, France became the world's second-largest arms supplier, supplying weapons to 65 countries, and its major arms exports to other European countries surged by 187 percent. Russia's arms exports fell sharply by 64 percent, accounting for 7.8 percent of the global market, with its ranking dropping to third.
In addition, arms imports to the Americas increased by 13 percent in the five years from 2020 to 2024. The U.S. was the largest importer in the region, accounting for 3.1 percent of total global arms imports and 50 percent of total arms imports to the Americas.
In a press release related to the report, researchers at SIPRI's Arms Transfers Programme noted that despite policy goals of reducing dependence on imports and strengthening European own industries, arms imports from the U.S. have increased, and the new figures clearly reflected the rearmament taking place among states in Europe. ■
