waging war
UNITED NATIONS
Global military spending reached an unprecedented $2.7 trillion in 2024 amid intensifying wars and rising geopolitical tensions worldwide, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has warned.
“The world is spending far more on waging war than in building peace,” he said at a press briefing on Tuesday for his new report on the threat posed by the steady rise in military expenditure. Spending on security needs increased across all five global regions during 2024, marking the steepest year-on-year rise for at least the last three decades.
Compared to the $2.7 trillion directed to military budgets, the world could eliminate extreme poverty for just under $300 billion.“A more secure world begins by investing at least as much in fighting poverty as we do in fighting wars,” said Mr. Guterres.
The alarming amount spent on arms-related costs last year alone is 750 times the 2024 UN regular budget. It also equates to almost 13 times the development assistance provided by the OECD’s development assistance committee in 2024, indicating a stark trade-off between military expenditure and sustainable development.
“Redirecting even a fraction of today’s military spending could close vital gaps – putting children in school, strengthening primary health care, expanding clean energy and resilient infrastructure, and protecting the most vulnerable,” Guterres said.
For a small portion of what was invested in militaries this past year – and the previous decade – the world could fund education for every student in low and lower middle-income countries, eliminate child malnutrition globally, fund climate change adaptation in the developing world, and bring the international community closer to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the UN estimates.
“Rebalancing global priorities is not optional – it is an imperative for humanity’s survival,” said the UN disarmament chief Izumi Nakamitsu at the press briefing.With only one of the five of the SDGs on track, Guterres stressed that “our shared promise of sustainable development is in jeopardy.”
