Global military spending hits USD2.7 trillion as peace and development goals falter, warns UN chief

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said that the world is spending far more on waging war than on building peace and highlighted that in 2024 alone, global military spending soared to an unprecedented USD 2.7 trillion, nearly 13 times the total official development assistance from the world’s wealthiest nations and an astonishing 750 times the regular budget of the United Nations.

Against this backdrop, the UN Secretary-General has issued a stark warning that the global promise of sustainable development is in serious jeopardy. With only one in five Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) targets on track, he called on nations to reassess their priorities, invest in people and diplomacy, and rebalance their spending toward peace rather than conflict.

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Guterres has condemned recent Israeli attacks on Qatar, calling them a flagrant violation of the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

“A country that has been playing a very positive role in achieving a ceasefire and securing the release of all hostages is being attacked,” Guterres said. “All parties must work towards achieving a permanent ceasefire, not destroying it.” He noted that the day’s events underscore the urgency of addressing global military spending and rethinking international priorities.

Guterres made these remarks during the launch of a new UN report titled “The Security We Need: Rebalancing Military Spending for a Sustainable and Peaceful Future.”

The report paints a stark picture of global priorities, revealing that in 2024, military spending reached an all-time high of USD 2.7 trillion — equivalent to USD 334 for every person on the planet. This figure is nearly 13 times greater than the total amount of official development assistance provided by the world’s wealthiest nations and 750 times the regular budget of the United Nations.

This report focuses on the twin trajectories of rising military budgets and lagging development. It shows that sustained growth in military spending is not in line with the spirit of the Charter of the United Nations, in which Member States committed to settling international disputes by peaceful means. Increasing military expenditure also undermines sustainable development, crowds out social investment, and weakens multilateral cooperation. In conflict settings, it outright destroys development gains.

Commissioned under the Pact for the Future, the report highlights the damaging consequences of increasing military expenditures while progress toward achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) remains far off track. It states that sustained military budget growth contradicts the UN Charter, which calls for the peaceful resolution of disputes. It also shows how such spending undermines sustainable development, crowds out essential social investments, and weakens multilateral cooperation. In conflict-affected regions, rising military expenditures often reverse hard-won development gains.

Calling upon the countries to invest more in addressing the issue of poverty, he said, “A more secure world begins by investing at least as much in fighting poverty as we do in fighting wars.”

Guterres warned that the global commitment to sustainable development is now in jeopardy. “Only one in five Sustainable Development Goal targets is on track. The financing gap is growing — and so is the cost of inaction,” he said. While acknowledging that governments have legitimate responsibilities to protect civilians, safeguard infrastructure, and address immediate threats, he stressed that lasting security cannot be achieved by military spending alone.

Describing the report as a call to action, Guterres urged world leaders to rethink their priorities and rebalance global investments to focus on the security people truly need. He emphasised three key messages. First, he said, the current trajectory of military spending is unsustainable. “Soaring military expenditures are adding pressure to what was already a strained financial context — crowding out essential investments in health, education, job creation, protecting people from droughts and floods, and expanding opportunities for women and young people.” He added that investing in people is investing in the first line of defence against violence in any society.

Second, the Secretary-General stressed that a better path is within reach. “Budgets are choices. Redirecting even a fraction of today’s military spending could close vital gaps — putting children in school, strengthening primary healthcare, expanding clean energy and resilient infrastructure, and protecting the most vulnerable,” he said.

Third, he called for practical steps to rebalance national and global priorities. These include putting diplomacy first, ensuring transparency and accountability in defence budgets, and significantly increasing financing for development. “The evidence is clear: excessive military spending does not guarantee peace,” Guterres said. “It often undermines it — fuelling arms races, deepening mistrust and diverting resources from the very foundations of stability.”