Trends in International Arms Transfers, 2024
www.sipri.org
From 10 March 2025 the freely available SIPRI Arms Transfers Database includes updated data on transfers of major arms for 1950–2024. Based on the new data, this fact sheet presents global trends in arms exports and arms imports, and highlights selected issues related to transfers of major arms.

Here is the SIPRI report (pdf).

Imports of major arms by states in Europe increased by 155 per cent between 2015–19 and 2020–24. However, there was almost no change in the global volume of arms transfers between the two periods (–0.6 per cent) because increases in arms transfers to Europe and the Americas were offset by overall decreases in transfers to all other regions.

Ukraine was the world’s largest importer of major arms in 2020–24, as its imports increased nearly 100 times over (+9627 per cent) compared with 2015–19. It was the only European state among the world’s top 10 arms importers in 2020–24. However, Europe’s total share of global arms imports rose from 11% in 2015-19 to 28% in 2020-24.

The United States was by far the largest exporter of major arms in 2020–24 with a share of 43 per cent of global arms exports. Russia’s arms exports decreased by 64 per cent between 2015–19 and 2020–24, making it the world’s third largest arms exporter behind the USA and France.

Some other facts:

  • The five largest arms exporters in 2020–24 were the United States, France, Russia, China and Germany.
  • Arms exports by the USA went up by 21 per cent between 2015–19 and 2020–24, while those by Russia went down by 64 per cent.
  • France’s arms exports increased by 11 per cent.
  • The five largest arms importers in 2020–24 were Ukraine, India, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan.
  • States in Asia and Oceania accounted for 33 per cent of all arms imports in 2020–24, followed by those in Europe (28 per cent), the Middle East (27 per cent), the Americas (6.2 per cent) and Africa (4.5 per cent).
  • Ukraine was the world’s biggest arms importer in 2020–24, accounting for 8.8 per cent of global imports, as states supplied arms, mostly as aid, in response to the full- scale Russian invasion in February 2022.
  • The USA accounted for 64 per cent of arms imports by European NATO states in 2020–24, which was a substantially larger share than in 2015–19 (52 per cent).
  • Russian arms imports from North Korea in 2020–24 were in violation of a United Nations arms embargo on the supplier state.