Europe leads global arms imports market as demand surges: SIPRI report

BELFAST — Europe bought 33 percent of global arms imports over the last five years, making it the largest defense importer by region on the globe, according to a report from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). Ukraine, Poland and the United Kingdom were the three biggest European weapon system importers between 2021 and 2025, said SIPRI, with close to half of all supplies in the region, as a whole, coming from the US. “Threat perceptions concerning Russia, compounded by uncertainties over the USA’s commitment to defending its European allies, have boosted demand for arms among European member states…