Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia - Global arms trade remains dominated by a\nsmall number of countries. In a world increasingly filled with wars,\nregional conflicts, and geopolitical rivalries, the arms market remains\nconcentrated among long-standing players with enormous influence.<\/p>\n
The SIPRI Yearbook 2025 notes there are 64 countries that are major\nsuppliers of arms during 2020-2024. However, the majority are small\nplayers. Of the 25 largest suppliers, they account for 98% of total\nglobal arms export volume. In fact, the top five alone contribute 71% of\nworld exports. The five are the United States (US), France, Russia,\nChina, and Germany.<\/p>\n
The United States Remains the World\u2019s Leading Arms Exporter<\/p>\n
The United States remains unmatched as the world\u2019s largest arms\nexporter. Its share of arms exports is almost half, specifically 43% of\ntotal global exports for 2020-2024.<\/p>\n
Not only is it the largest, but the US also shows a significant\nincrease in exports compared with the previous period of 2015-2019, when\nits share was 35%.<\/p>\n
In the report, SIPRI also explains that plans for large-scale arms\ndeliveries in the coming years suggest that the US is still likely to\nremain firmly the world\u2019s largest supplier of arms.<\/p>\n
In other words, Washington\u2019s dominance in the global arms market does\nnot look set to waver any time soon.<\/p>\n
The gap between the US and other countries is wide. America\u2019s market\nshare is more than four times that of France.<\/p>\n
SIPRI notes that of the world\u2019s 100 largest defence and security\ncompanies, 41 are based in the United States with arms revenues\ntotalling US$317 billion in 2023.<\/p>\n
That figure equals roughly half of the total revenue of the Global\nTop 100. Moreover, the five largest arms companies in the world are all\nAmerican. The US firms are Lockheed Martin, RTX, Northrop Grumman,\nBoeing, and General Dynamics.<\/p>\n
France Surges and Holds Second Place<\/p>\n
Below the US, France occupies second place as the world\u2019s largest\narms exporter with a market share of 9.6%.<\/p>\n
Although still far behind the US, this shows France has strengthened\nits role in the global arms market.<\/p>\n
SIPRI notes that French arms exports rose by 11% between 2015-2019\nand 2020-2024. The rise is enough to position France as the world\u2019s\nsecond-largest supplier.<\/p>\n
In a highly competitive market, this increase demonstrates that\nFrance\u2019s defence industry remains aggressive and competitive on the\ninternational stage.<\/p>\n
Russia Begins to Lose Its Clout<\/p>\n
Russia remains in third place with a 7.8% share. However, behind the\ntop three, there is a steep downward trend. SIPRI notes that Russia\u2019s\narms exports collapsed by about half between 2015-2019 and\n2020-2024.<\/p>\n
Indeed, Russia\u2019s export level in 2020-2024 was far lower than in the\nprevious five-year period in modern Russian history. If extended further\nback, this was also lower than at any time since 1950 for its\npredecessor, the Soviet Union.<\/p>\n
In other words, although Russia remains in the top three, its\ndominance has clearly weakened. In terms of market share, Russia is no\nlonger the main challenger to the US as in the past. Its gap with France\nis not very wide, while pressure from other countries is growing.<\/p>\n
China Remains a Major Power in the Military-Industrial Complex<\/p>\n
China sits in fourth place among the world\u2019s largest arms exporters\nwith a market share of 5.9% in 2020-2024.<\/p>\n
On the industrial side, China\u2019s position appears particularly strong.\nSIPRI notes that nine Chinese companies were in the Top 100 in 2023,\nwith three among the top ten.<\/p>\n
Total arms revenue of Chinese companies reached US$103 billion,\nmaking China the second-largest arms-industry revenue country after the\nUnited States.<\/p>\n
Germany Completes the Global Top Five Arms Exporters<\/p>\n
Germany closes the Top Five list with a 5.6% market share in\n2020-2024. While it sits behind China, this position underscores Europe\nas still one of the main hubs for global arms trade.<\/p>\n
Germany\u2019s presence alongside France in the top five also demonstrates\nthat Europe\u2019s defence-industrial strength remains substantial.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, SIPRI Yearbook 2024 provides a clearer picture of what\ntypes of weapons are currently most in demand globally.<\/p>\n
This is reflected in large contracts for major weapons already\nordered or at the bidding stage, with deliveries scheduled after\n2024.<\/p>\n
The list shows that global demand for arms has not waned, even as the\nworld\u2019s security environment grows more tense.<\/p>\n
The weapons ordered span a range\u2014from combat aircraft, warships,\ntanks, air defence systems to combat drones\u2014with buyers scattered across\nEurope, Asia, and the Middle East.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/ten-countries-dominate-the-global-arms-trade-the-united-states-far-ahead-1772938938", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }