INDIA REMAINS WORLD’S LARGEST ARMS IMPORTER

India remains the world's largest arms importer, with Russia as its major source of purchases. According to a report released by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) on Monday, March 11, 2024.

India’s Arms Imports

1. India accounted for 9.8 percent of the total global arms imports during the 2019-2023 period.
2. The country’s arms imports increased by 4.7 percent between 2014-18 and 2019-23.
3. This is despite the government’s ongoing efforts to boost domestic defence manufacturing and procurement.

Trends in Indian Imports

1. Russia's share in Indian arms exports is gradually falling.
2. Russia accounted for 36 percent of India’s total arms imports during the period under review.
3. This is the first time since the 1960-64 term that Russia’s share fell below the 50 percent mark.
4. The trend is expected to continue as India turns to France and the United States for military hardware.
5. Russia focuses on meeting its domestic demands amidst the ongoing war in Ukraine.
6. France accounted for 33 percent of India’s total arms imports.
7. The United States contributed 13 percent.
8. With India’s recent acquisition of 31 armed MQ-9B Sky Guardian drones from the US for $3.9 billion and 26 Rafale-M fighters from France for $6 billion, the share of these 2 countries is likely to increase in the current five-year period.

The China Factor

1. Arms imports by Japan and South Korea increased by 155% and 6.5%, respectively, due to concerns over China's aggression in the Indo-Pacific region.
2. China's own arms imports decreased by 44%, partly due to its main supplier, Russia. Russia focuses on meeting its domestic demands amidst the ongoing war in Ukraine.
3. Military and defense cooperation between China and Pakistan, two of India's major rivals, deepened during the five-year period.
4. A significant 61% of China's total defense exports went to Pakistan, followed by 11% to Bangladesh.

Decline in India’s Arms Imports

1. India's arms imports declined by 11 percent between 2013-17 and 2018-22, despite remaining the world's top arms importer.

The decline was caused by the following factors:

1. A complex procurement process
2. Efforts to diversify arms suppliers
3. Attempts to replace imports with local designs

Top Arms Importers and Exporters

1. The five largest arms importers in the world during 2018-22 were:
   1. India
   2. Saudi Arabia
   3. Qatar
   4. Australia
   5. China
2. The five largest arms exporters were:
   1. United States
   2. Russia
   3. France
   4. China
   5. Germany
3. Pakistan, the world’s eighth-largest arms importer during 2018-22, saw a 14 percent increase in its imports, with China being its main supplier

France’s Growing Arms Exports

1. France's arms exports increased by 44 percent between 2013-17 and 2018-22.
2. Most of these exports went to countries in Asia, Oceania, and the Middle East.
3. India received 30 percent of France's arms exports during 2018-22.
4. France overtakes the US as second largest supplier of arms to India after Russia.
5. France is gaining a bigger share of the global arms market as Russian arms exports decline, as seen in India.

Shifts in Global Arms Exports

1. The report compared two five-year periods.
2. The United States’ share of global arms exports increased from 33 to 40 percent.
3. Russia’s share of global arms exports fell from 22 to 16 percent.
4. Arms transfers to Europe have risen sharply due to tensions between Russia and most other European states.

Middle East Arms Imports: Three Middle Eastern countries were among the top 10 arms importers during 2018-22:

1. Saudi Arabia
2. Qatar
3. Egypt

Saudi Arabia was the world’s second-largest arms importer during this period, receiving 9.6 percent of all arms imports.

Qatar’s arms imports increased by 311 percent between 2013-17 and 2018-22, making it the world’s third-biggest arms importer during 2018-22.

 

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