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Critical Topics and Their Significance for the UPSC CSE Examination on March 11, 2025

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India second-largest arms importer after Ukraine in 2020-24, says SIPRI

For Preliminary Examination:  Current events of national and international importance

For Mains Examination: GS III - Security Issues

Context:

At 36%, imports from Russia made up largest share of Indian imports, down from 55% in 2015-19; India received the largest share of French arms exports at 28%; China dropped out of the list of top 10 arms importers for the first time since 1990-94

Read about:

Indigenization of defence

Which countries are the top arms suppliers to India?

Key takeaways:

• Ukraine, engaged in a conflict with Russia for the past four years, emerged as the world's largest importer of major arms between 2020 and 2024, witnessing an almost 100-fold surge in imports compared to the 2015–2019 period.
• India ranked as the second-largest arms importer, despite experiencing a 9.3% decline in imports between the two periods, according to data from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).
• India remained the top destination for arms exports from both Russia and France, although its imports from Moscow saw a notable decline.
• For the first time since 1990–94, China did not feature among the top 10 arms importers, reflecting the growth of its domestic defense industry.
• The share of Russian arms in India’s total imports stood at 36% in 2020–24, a marked decrease from 55% in 2015–19 and 72% in 2010–14, as per the report.
• Pakistan’s arms imports rose by 61% over the same period, with China strengthening its role as the country's primary supplier. Beijing accounted for 81% of Pakistan’s arms imports in 2020–24, up from 74% in the previous five-year span.
• Arms imports by European nations collectively surged by 155% as the region ramped up its defense capabilities. Meanwhile, the U.S. expanded its dominance in global arms exports, increasing its share to 43%.
• In contrast, Russia’s arms exports declined by 64%, bringing its global share down to 7.8%, placing it behind France (9.6%), which became the second-largest arms exporter in 2020–24.
• Four nations from Asia and Oceania—India, Pakistan, Japan, and Australia—were among the world's top 10 arms importers during this period.
• Russia supplied major arms to 33 countries, with two-thirds of its exports going to just three nations: India (38%), China (17%), and Kazakhstan (11%).

French Arms Exports

During this period, France exported arms to 65 countries, with its military exports to European nations nearly tripling (187%) between 2015–19 and 2020–24. This surge was largely driven by deliveries of combat aircraft to Greece and Croatia, along with military aid to Ukraine following Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022.

India accounted for the largest share of French arms exports (28%), nearly double the total sent to all European nations combined (15%). Qatar was the second-largest recipient, receiving 9.7% of France’s major arms exports.