Chinese warships and nuclear submarines participating in an international fleet review held by China on April 23, 2009 in Qingdao of Shandong Province, China.
China has emerged as the world’s second military spender after the US with an estimated spending of 84.9 billion dollars in 2008.
The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) reported on Monday that China had increased its arms spending by 10 percent as Beijing commenced building a new range of highly sophisticated nuclear submarines, stealth warships, new generation of fighter planes and communications technology.
“They are the second biggest military spender now, that does not mean they are the second strongest military power, because a lot of other countries have been at this game for a lot longer than China,” Sam Perlo-Freeman, a researcher for the peace institute said.
The world’s arms expenditure totaled 1464 billion US dollars last year, witnessing an increase of almost 45 percent from one decade ago.
The US holds a 41 percent share in world military spending (roughly 607 billion dollars), while France, Britain, and Russia each account for four percent, the SIPRI Yearbook said.
According to SIPRI, the “War on Terrorism” had encouraged several Asian countries including India, South Korea and Taiwan, to raise their defense spending by purchasing ultra-modern surveillance and detection equipment.
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