A new report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) shows that the United States is still the world’s leading arms exporter. In fact, US arms exports have increased significantly as a percentage of the global total, from 30% between 2009 and 2013 to 36% between 2014 and 2018. Russia is the second-largest arms exporter, but its exports dropped by 17% in the latest report. As a result, US exports “were 75 percent higher than Russia’s in the 2014–18 period, while they were only 12 percent higher in 2009-13.”
The US has exported arms to almost 100 countries in the mentioned five-year period, with the majority (52%) of arms being shipped to the Middle East. The world’s main arms importer is Saudi Arabia, contributing to 12% of global imports.
Read more: U.S. Remains World’s Top Arms Exporter, With Russia A Distant Second
