External purchases of war artifacts registered an increase of 94 percent and Ukraine emerged as the main importer in the area due to the conflict with Russia, the organization said.

“With many orders for high-value weapons, including almost 800 fighter jets and combat helicopters, European arms imports are likely to remain at a high level,” estimated SIPRI researcher Pieter Wezeman.

Over the past two years, Western Europe has also increased demand for air defense systems as a result of its support for Ukraine, the expert noted.

Approximately 55 percent of arms imports were supplied by the United States in the 2019-2023 period, compared to 35 percent in 2014-2018, SIPRI stated.

At the same time, he noted, Europe is responsible for around a third of global arms exports, including large volumes leaving the region, reflecting the strong military-industrial capacity installed in the area.

Many factors influence the decisions of European states of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) to import from the United States, including interest in maintaining transatlantic relations and more technical, military and cost-related issues, he reasoned. the fountain.

If the so-called transatlantic relations changed in the coming years, “the arms acquisition policies of European states could also be modified,” said SIPRI director Dan Smith.

According to the study, the global volume of international arms transfers fell by 3.3 percent when comparing the stages of 2014-2018 and 2019-23; However, he exemplified, exports from the United States and France continued to rise.

North American sales grew by 17 percent and their share of total arms exports worldwide increased from 34 to 42 percentage points, following the same comparison.

From 2019 to 2023, the United States delivered major weapons to 107 States, more than in any previous five-year period and much more than any other exporter in the industry, SIPRI explained.

North American and Western European supplies together accounted for 72 percent of all arms exports from 2019-2023, compared to 62 percent in 2014-2018.

“The United States has increased its global role as an arms supplier, an important aspect of its foreign policy, exporting more weapons to more countries than ever before,” said SIPRI Arms Transfers Program Director Matthew George.

“This -the expert considered- comes at a time when emerging powers are challenging the economic and geopolitical dominance of the United States.”

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