SIPRI is proud to announce the online release of its extended military expenditure data. Previously, the SIPRI Military Expenditure Database covered the period 1988–2015; the extended military expenditure data goes back in most cases at least to the 1960s, and in some cases to 1949.

The new data highlights long-term trends in military spending. In the case of the USA, clear peaks in spending can be seen during the Korean War, the ‘Reagan build-up’ and the more recent wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. In Western Europe, military spending rose steadily during the cold war, while in Africa, military spending has surged in recent decades as the continent’s economies have improved.

Europe and the Americas are the regions with the best data availability. Data for the Soviet Union and China is not available before 1988 due to severe difficulties in producing reliable estimates.

SIPRI launches extended military expenditure data covering 1949–2015
https://www.sipri.org/news/2016/sipri-launches-extended-military-expenditure-data