US arms exports to Europe triple, boosted by Ukraine aid: SIPRI

PARIS — United States arms exports to Europe have more than tripled on aid for Ukraine and as European countries boosted weapons buying in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, according to an analysis by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.

Shipments of U.S. weapons to Europe rose 233% in the 2020-2024 time frame from the prior five-year period, according to a March 10 report by the Swedish think tank. For the first time in two decades, Europe accounted for the largest share of U.S. arms exports, SIPRI said.

Russia’s aggression has caused upheaval in the international arms market, with the U.S. solidifying its position as the world’s largest weapons exporter, as European countries multiplied orders to rebuild hollowed-out armed forces.

Meanwhile, Russian arms exports have plunged.

“The new arms transfers figures clearly reflect the rearmament taking place among states in Europe in response to the threat from Russia,” said Mathew George, program director with the SIPRI Arms Transfers Programme.

European NATO members more than doubled their arms imports between 2015-2019 and 2020-2024, with the U.S. supplying 64% of those imports in the most recent period, compared with 52% in the prior five years, according to the report. France and South Korea were the other two main suppliers to European NATO members, each accounting for 6.5% of imports.

Europe accounted for 35% of U.S. arms exports, overtaking the Middle East, even if Saudi Arabia remained the largest single recipient of U.S. weapons.

“The USA is in a unique position when it comes to arms exports,” George said. “The USA continues to be the supplier of choice for advanced long-range strike capabilities like combat aircraft.” European NATO countries had 472 combat aircraft on order from the U.S. by the end of 2024, according to SIPRI.

The U.S. accounted for 43% of global arms exports, with Saudi Arabia accounting for a 12% share, followed by Ukraine and Japan as the biggest recipients. The U.S. is the main supplier of long-range land attack missiles with a range of more than 250 kilometers, accounting for 45% of exports in that category.

Ukraine, the U.K., the Netherlands and Norway were among the ten largest recipients of American arms in the five years through 2024. Ukraine accounted for 26% of U.S. exports to Europe, and 71% of those transfers were second-hand arms taken from stocks for quick delivery, according to SIPRI.

An increasingly belligerent Russia and stress on transatlantic relations during the first presidency of Donald Trump means European NATO states have taken steps to reduce their dependency on arms imports, according to Pieter Wezeman, senior researcher with the SIPRI Arms Transfers Programme.

Of more than $180 billion in defense equipment contracts signed by European NATO countries between February 2022 and September 2024, at least 52% was spent on European systems and 34% on U.S. systems, according to estimates by the International Institute for Strategic Studies published in October.

France was the second-biggest exporter in the 2020-2024 period, with a 9.6% share of global arms shipments, led by India, Qatar and Egypt, all buyers of the country’s Rafale fighter jet.

Russia ranked third in weapon exports in 2020-2024, with India, China and Kazakhstan its biggest customers. The country accounted for 7.8% of global arms exports in the period, a little over one-third of the share it held in the five years through to 2019.

“The war against Ukraine has further accelerated the drop in Russia’s arms exports because more weapons are needed on the battlefield, trade sanctions make it harder for Russia to produce and sell its weapons, and the USA and its allies pressure states not to buy Russian arms,” said Wezeman.

The U.S. had outstanding orders for 996 combat aircraft for delivery after 2024, followed by France with 214 aircraft, South Korea with 140 and Russia with 71 combat aircraft, according to SIPRI. The researchers said order data can give “a rough indication” of which countries will be the top exporters in coming years, with combat aircraft and major warships particularly telling due to their high value.

The U.K., the seventh-biggest arms exporter in the period, has 29 major warships on order, followed by Germany with 26 and France with 22 warships, according to the SIPRI data.

Ukraine became the largest weapons importer in the 2020-2024 period. The U.S. accounted for 45% of arms shipped to the country, followed by Germany with 12% and Poland with 11%.

India was the second-biggest importer in the most recent period, with Russia and France its biggest suppliers, with Qatar the third-largest buyer in the international weapons market, and with the U.S. its biggest supplier.

Editor’s note: This story was updated to correct the U.K. ranking in arms exports.

Rudy Ruitenberg is a Europe correspondent for Defense News. He started his career at Bloomberg News and has experience reporting on technology, commodity markets and politics.

巴黎——斯德哥尔摩国际和平研究所的一项分析显示，由于美国向乌克兰提供援助，以及欧洲国家为应对俄罗斯入侵乌克兰而增加武器采购，美国对欧洲的武器出口增长了两倍多。

根据瑞典智库斯德哥尔摩国际和平研究所（SIPRI）3月10日发布的一份报告，2020年至2024年期间，美国对欧洲的武器出口量较前五年增长了233%。SIPRI指出，欧洲二十年来首次成为美国武器出口的最大市场。

俄罗斯的侵略行为导致国际军火市场动荡，美国巩固了其作为世界最大武器出口国的地位，而欧洲各国则增加了订单以重建被掏空的武装力量。

与此同时，俄罗斯武器出口大幅下降。

“新的武器转让数据清楚地反映了欧洲各国为应对俄罗斯的威胁而进行的重新武装，”斯德哥尔摩国际和平研究所武器转让项目主任马修·乔治说。

报告显示，2015-2019年和2020-2024年间，欧洲北约成员国的武器进口量增长了一倍多，其中美国在最近这段时期内占64%，而前五年这一比例为52%。法国和韩国是欧洲北约成员国的另外两个主要武器供应国，各自占进口总量的6.5%。

欧洲占美国武器出口的 35%，超过了中东，尽管沙特阿拉伯仍然是美国武器的最大单一接收国。

乔治表示：“美国在武器出口方面拥有独特的地位。美国仍然是先进远程打击能力（例如战斗机）的首选供应商。”根据斯德哥尔摩国际和平研究所（SIPRI）的数据，到2024年底，欧洲北约国家已向美国订购了472架战斗机。

美国占全球武器出口的43%，沙特阿拉伯占12%，乌克兰和日本是最大的武器进口国。美国是射程超过250公里的远程陆攻导弹的主要供应国，占该类导弹出口总量的45%。

在截至 2024 年的五年间，乌克兰、英国、荷兰和挪威是美国武器十大接收国之一。据斯德哥尔摩国际和平研究所 (SIPRI) 称，乌克兰占美国对欧洲武器出口的 26%，其中 71% 的转让是二手武器，这些武器是从库存中取出以便快速交付的。

据斯德哥尔摩国际和平研究所武器转让项目高级研究员皮特·韦泽曼称，俄罗斯日益好战以及唐纳德·特朗普第一任总统任期内跨大西洋关系的紧张局势意味着欧洲北约国家已采取措施减少对武器进口的依赖。

根据国际战略研究所 10 月份发布的估计数据，在 2022 年 2 月至 2024 年 9 月期间，欧洲北约国家签署的超过 1800 亿美元的国防装备合同中，至少 52% 用于欧洲系统，34% 用于美国系统。

在 2020-2024 年期间，法国是全球第二大武器出口国，占全球武器出货量的 9.6%，主要出口国为印度、卡塔尔和埃及，这三个国家都是法国“阵风”战斗机的买家。

2020年至2024年，俄罗斯武器出口位居世界第三，其最大的客户是印度、中国和哈萨克斯坦。在此期间，俄罗斯占全球武器出口的7.8%，略高于其在截至2019年的五年中所占份额的三分之一。

韦泽曼表示：“由于战场上需要更多武器，对乌克兰的战争进一步加速了俄罗斯武器出口的下降；贸易制裁使俄罗斯更难生产和销售武器；美国及其盟友向各国施压，要求它们不要购买俄罗斯武器。”

根据斯德哥尔摩国际和平研究所（SIPRI）的数据，美国有996架战斗机订单尚未交付，预计将于2024年后交付；法国有214架；韩国有140架；俄罗斯有71架。研究人员表示，订单数据可以“大致表明”未来几年哪些国家将成为主要出口国，而战斗机和大型军舰由于其高价值，尤其能说明问题。

根据斯德哥尔摩国际和平研究所（SIPRI）的数据，英国是这一时期第七大武器出口国，订购了 29 艘主要军舰，其次是德国（26 艘）和法国（22 艘）。

2020年至2024年期间，乌克兰成为最大的武器进口国。美国占该国武器进口总量的45%，其次是德国（12%）和波兰（11%）。

在最近一段时间内，印度是第二大进口国，俄罗斯和法国是其最大的供应国；卡塔尔是国际武器市场的第三大买家，美国是其最大的供应国。

编者按：本文已更新，以更正英国在武器出口方面的排名。

鲁迪·鲁伊滕贝格是《防务新闻》的欧洲记者。他的职业生涯始于彭博新闻社，拥有报道科技、大宗商品市场和政治方面的经验。