Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI): Annual Yearbook Overview

Key Chapter Title List

1. International Security and Armed Conflict
2. Military Expenditure, Arms Production and Trade
3. World Nuclear Forces
4. Proliferation and Use of Missiles and Armed Drones
5. Nuclear Non-proliferation, Arms Control and Disarmament
6. Chemical and Biological Weapons Security Threats
7. Conventional Arms Control and Regulation of Inhumane Weapons
8. Artificial Intelligence and International Peace and Security
9. Cybersecurity Threats and Digital Threats
10. Space Security Governance
11. Arms and Dual-Use Goods Trade Controls
12. Overview of Arms Control and Disarmament Agreements

Document Introduction

The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) Yearbook 2025 provides a comprehensive and sobering assessment of the global security landscape in 2024, continuing its tradition of independent, open-source-based research. The report notes that the global security situation continued to deteriorate in 2024, marked by major armed conflicts in Ethiopia, Gaza, Myanmar, Sudan, and Ukraine. Global military expenditure grew for the tenth consecutive year, surpassing the $2.7 trillion mark for the first time, with the global military burden (military spending as a share of global GDP) rising to 2.5%. Concurrently, the estimated total number of conflict-related deaths increased from 188,000 in 2023 to 239,000, reaching the highest level since 2018. These trends highlight an international security landscape characterized by heightened interstate tensions, ineffective conflict resolution mechanisms, and challenges to multilateral cooperation.

The Yearbook is structured into three main parts, systematically presenting developments in key areas. The first part focuses on international security and armed conflict, providing a detailed analysis of conflict dynamics worldwide in 2024. It highlights that Europe, due to the Russia-Ukraine war, became the region with the highest number of conflict deaths, and that hostilities expanded in the Middle East. The report emphasizes that although the number of conflicts slightly decreased, their intensity and the degree of external intervention increased. The second part delves into military expenditure, the arms industry, and international arms transfers. Data shows that US military spending ($997 billion) remains far ahead, with China ranking second ($314 billion). US companies dominate the list of the world's top 100 arms-producing companies. Regarding international arms trade, US exports saw significant growth between 2020-2024, while Russian exports sharply declined. Ukraine became the world's largest arms importer, with its imports surging nearly 100-fold compared to the previous period.

The third part is dedicated to examining progress and challenges in the fields of non-proliferation, arms control, and disarmament. On nuclear weapons, the report warns that the era of nuclear disarmament appears to be over, with US-Russia bilateral nuclear arms control at a standstill. All nuclear-armed states are advancing modernization programs. While the global nuclear arsenal is slowly declining, signs of a new and riskier qualitative arms race are emerging. In the conventional domain, the implementation of the Chemical Weapons Convention and the Biological Weapons Convention faces severe challenges, with allegations and investigations in Syria, Ukraine, and elsewhere raising serious concerns. The widespread use of missiles and armed drones in the Russia-Ukraine war and Middle Eastern conflicts marks their emergence as a core element of modern warfare, yet corresponding international control mechanisms lag severely behind.

Furthermore, the Yearbook features thematic discussions on the impact of emerging technologies on international security. The dual-use application of artificial intelligence in military and civilian domains presents new risks and governance dilemmas. Cybersecurity threats are diverse, ranging from ransomware attacks to critical infrastructure disruption, prompting the United Nations to adopt its first-ever UN Convention on Cybercrime. The militarization of space is becoming increasingly prominent, with frequent incidents of interference against space systems, underscoring the urgent need to establish stable and predictable norms of behavior in space. Finally, the report reviews the operation of the global arms and dual-use goods trade control system under multiple pressures, including the effectiveness of the Arms Trade Treaty, challenges in implementing UN and EU arms embargoes, and updates and adjustments to major export control regimes.

Based on several core databases maintained by SIPRI over the long term, including those on military expenditure, arms production, arms transfers, and arms embargoes, this report provides researchers, policymakers, and professionals concerned with international security with indispensable data support and in-depth analysis. It is an essential reference for understanding the complex current global security picture and future trends.