According to the peace research institute SIPRI, one can see some of the sharpest increases in defense spending among the countries around the Baltic Sea.
Finland stands out with an increase of a whopping 36 percent.
– We live in troubled times and we can see that clearly in these expenses, says Joakim Vaverka, deputy director at SIPRI.
“Will increase”
But also Lithuania with 27 percent, Sweden with 12 percent and Poland with 11 percent show that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine caused the countries around the Baltic Sea to open their wallets considerably when it comes to military spending.
Sweden spent a total of 7.7 billion on defense in 2022 according to figures from SIPRI. That is 1.3 percent of Sweden’s GDP.
– Now that Sweden has announced membership in NATO, there is a requirement that you spend 2 percent of your GDP on military defense. So that’s the increase we’re seeing now and it will increase, says Joakim Vaverka, deputy director at SIPRI.
