Record Global Spending on Nuclear Weapons in 2025
Nuclear powers increased their spending on nuclear arsenals to a record level of approximately $119 billion last year, representing a 19% rise. According to a report published on Tuesday, this trend is expected to continue for decades.
A report issued by the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons revealed that the nine nuclear-armed states—the United States, Russia, China, United Kingdom, France, India, Israel, Pakistan, and North Korea—spent roughly $17 billion more on their arsenals last year than they did in 2024.
The report warned that, amid rising geopolitical tensions, “a new nuclear arms race is looming” and is expected to continue “for decades.”
On Monday, researchers at the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute warned that nuclear-armed countries are removing weapons from storage and deploying them on launch systems, while weapons of mass destruction are playing an increasingly significant role in global politics.
According to Suzy Snyder, who contributed to the report, the increase in nuclear weapons spending, combined with concerns that artificial intelligence could raise the risk of nuclear weapon use, is deeply alarming.
She told AFP: “I am terrified.”
A Growing Level of Risk
SIPRI estimates that the world’s nuclear powers possess approximately 12,187 nuclear warheads, around 9,745 of which remain in stockpiles awaiting potential use.
SIPRI Director Karim Haggag told AFP: “The most alarming aspect is that despite the reduction in the overall number of nuclear weapons, the level of nuclear risks and threats continues to increase.”
SIPRI anticipates a reversal of the long-term decline in nuclear stockpiles over the coming years, “as the pace of dismantlement slows while the deployment of new nuclear weapons accelerates.”
Karim Haggag highlighted several worrying indicators, including the erosion of strategic arms control systems such as international agreements and the growing rivalry among major nuclear powers.
The United States and Russia together hold approximately 83% of the world’s nuclear arsenal, with each country possessing more than 5,000 nuclear warheads.
China, meanwhile, is expanding its nuclear arsenal faster than any other country. SIPRI estimates that it currently possesses 620 warheads. Based on its planned force structure, the number of its intercontinental ballistic missiles could match those of the United States and Russia by 2030.
Karim Haggag stated that “the intensification of geopolitical competition provides China with a strong incentive to increase its reliance on nuclear weapons.”
According to the ICAN report, Washington spent more than all other nuclear powers combined, allocating $69.2 billion to nuclear weapons in 2025, an increase of $12.4 billion compared with the previous year. China ranked second with $13.5 billion, followed by the United Kingdom with $12.6 billion and Russia with $9.5 billion.
The organization, which was awarded the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize, found that the nine nuclear powers have spent more than $470 billion on their arsenals over the past five years.
“A War Crime”
These investments are expected to continue growing in the future.
By examining long-term spending projections, the organization highlighted figures from the United Kingdom, France, and the United States showing plans to invest billions of dollars in maintaining and modernizing these weapons systems well into the next century.
Other countries are also introducing new weapons systems with exceptionally long operational lifespans.
According to the organization, the future U.S. Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missiles are expected to remain in service beyond the year 2100. Furthermore, increased American production of plutonium pits suggests that nuclear warheads may remain operational until 2120.
Researchers argued that these enormous expenditures are particularly shocking at a time when the global humanitarian system is facing major funding cuts.
Suzy Snyder noted that “what these countries spent in 2025 could have funded the United Nations’ operating budget for 32 years,” adding that a single day of nuclear weapons spending last year could have provided food security for more than two million people.
She concluded: “Instead of providing assistance or ensuring essential services such as healthcare for their citizens, nuclear-armed states are investing in an arsenal that they themselves know cannot be used without committing a war crime.”
