Nuclear Weapons Spending Hits Record $119bn

Spending on nuclear weapons by the world’s nine nuclear-armed states rose by 19% to a record $119bn in 2025, according to a report by the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN).

The campaign group, which won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2017 and advocates the complete elimination of nuclear weapons, said the figure was the highest since it began tracking annual nuclear arms spending in 2020.

The United States remained by far the biggest spender, allocating $69.2bn to its nuclear arsenal last year. That was more than all other nuclear-armed states combined and marked a 22% increase from 2024. ICAN said the US was increasing military spending in general while also rebuilding its nuclear arsenal.

China ranked second, raising spending by 7% to $13.5bn. Britain overtook Russia to become the third-biggest spender after a 17% rise to $12.6bn. Russia spent $9.5bn, up 6% year-on-year, according to the report.

(reuters, max)