Global military spending soars to new record highs ( www.dw.com )

The global defense budget saw its largest yearly increase in 14 years in 2023, according to the think tank SIPRI. Russia's war in Ukraine, the China-Taiwan crisis and other global conflicts played a significant role.

The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) has updated its Military Expenditure Database for 2023, with top spenders such as the United States, China and Russia ratcheting up their military budgets.

Military spending is up in Africa, the Middle East, Europe, Asia, Oceania and North and South America. It's the first time since 2009 that annual spending has increased in all geographical regions examined by SIPRI at once.

With a budget increase of 105%, the Democratic Republic of the Congo stood out as the country with the single largest increase in military spending in 2023 by percentage. Researchers attributed this boost to the protracted conflict between the government and non-state armed groups.