India 5th largest military spender in 2025; Pakistan Ranks 31st: SIPRI

India emerged as the world’s fifth-largest military spender in 2025, with total expenditure reaching $92.1 billion, according to the latest report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute(SIPRI). The figure marks an 8.9% increase from the previous year and accounts for 3.2% of global military spending.The report places India behind the United States, China, Russia and Germany in overall defence expenditure. Meanwhile, Pakistan ranked 31st globally, with military spending rising 11% to $11.9 billion.
SIPRI data highlighted that India’s defence outlay was partly driven by heightened operational requirements, including emergency procurements during Operation Sindoor, aimed at maintaining combat readiness. The data also showed a broader regional trend, with China—the world’s second-largest military spender—raising its expenditure by 7.4% to $336 billion.Globally, military spending surged to $2,887 billion in 2025. The top three spenders—the United States, China and Russia—accounted for a combined $1,480 billion, representing 51% of total global expenditure. SIPRI noted that Europe was a key driver of this rise, with spending increasing 14% to $864 billion amid the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war and intensified rearmament efforts by NATO members.
Separate SIPRI findings on global arms transfers indicated that India remains the world’s second-largest importer of military hardware, accounting for 8.2% of global imports between 2021 and 2025, even as its imports declined 4% compared with the previous five-year period.The report attributed India’s arms imports primarily to its strategic tensions with China and Pakistan. It also pointed to a gradual shift in procurement patterns, with India diversifying away from Russia toward Western suppliers such as France, Israel and the United States. Russia, however, continues to remain India’s largest supplier, accounting for 40% of imports during 2021–25.
In a further push to strengthen defence capabilities, the Indian government has significantly increased allocations in the Union Budget for 2026–27. Defence spending was raised by over 15% to Rs7.85 lakh crore, including a capital outlay of Rs2.19 lakh crore aimed at acquiring advanced platforms such as fighter jets, submarines, artillery systems, missiles and unmanned technologies.