STOCKHOLM, Sweden — Military spending increased sharply in 2014 in China and Russia and the Ukraine conflict prompted eastern European countries to boost their defense programs, according to a study by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) released Monday.
The United States remains the world’s biggest spender on defense, but it spent 6.4 percent less year-on-year in 2014, while China, Russia and Saudi Arabia — the world’s next three highest spenders — all increased their expenditures.
China’s spending last year was estimated at $216 billion, a 9.7 percent rise.
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Source: The Philippine Daily Inquirer
