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By Nina LARSON with Johannes LEDEL in Stockholm Nuclear powers increased their spending on their arsenals to a record level last year, and increasingly took these weapons out of storage to install them on launch pads, according to two studies.
By Nina Larson with Johannes Ledel in Stockholm
Nuclear powers increased their spending on their arsenals to a record level last year and increasingly moved these weapons from storage to launch platforms, according to two studies.
A report by the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) reveals that the nine nuclear-armed states (United States, Russia, China, United Kingdom, France, India, Israel, Pakistan, and North Korea) spent nearly $119 billion on their arsenals last year (+19%).”A new nuclear arms race is looming,” warns ICAN.
This study, along with a report published Monday by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), cautions against the escalating nuclear risk in a context of rising geopolitical tensions.
This sharp increase in spending on nuclear weapons comes as states accelerate the modernization of their arsenals and reinforce the deployment of their existing stockpiles.The dramatic increases in spending, coupled with fears that artificial intelligence may accelerate decision-making regarding the use of nuclear weapons, are deeply concerning, according to Susi Snyder, ICAN’s program director and co-author of the report.”I am terrified,” she told AFP.
“The danger level is increasing.” According to SIPRI, the world’s nuclear powers possess an estimated total of 12,187 warheads, of which approximately 9,745 are in stockpiles for potential use.
“The most worrying news is that, even though the number of nuclear weapons has decreased, the level of nuclear danger and risk is increasing,” Karim Haggag, director of SIPRI, told AFP.
The downward trend in nuclear weapons stockpiles is expected to reverse in the coming years “as the pace of dismantling slows, while the deployment of new nuclear weapons accelerates,” the institute believes.
The weakening of strategic arms control systems, particularly international agreements, and the rivalry between major nuclear powers are further signs of concern, according to Haggag.Another worrying trend, he said, is that “nuclear-armed states are taking their weapons out of stockpiles and deploying them on nuclear delivery systems.”
The United States and Russia together possess about 83% of the world’s nuclear weapons stockpiles, with more than 5,000 warheads each.
China is developing its nuclear arsenal faster than any other country and has 620 warheads, which, according to SIPRI, could reach a level of intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) by 2030 comparable to that of Russia or the United States.
“Intensified geopolitical competition is strongly encouraging China to rely more heavily on nuclear weapons,” said Mr. Haggag.
According to ICAN, all nuclear powers have increased their investments in their arsenals, spending nearly $17 billion more last year than in 2024.
Washington spent more than all other countries combined, allocating $69.2 billion to nuclear weapons in 2025 alone—$12.4 billion more than in 2024. Next are China, whose spending is estimated at $13.5 billion, the United Kingdom ($12.6 billion), and Russia ($9.5 billion).
These nine states have spent a total of more than $470 billion on their arsenals over the past five years, according to ICAN.
“War crime”
These investments are expected to continue to grow.
By examining long-term spending projections, ICAN highlighted plans in the United Kingdom, France, and the United States to invest billions of dollars in the development and maintenance of these weapons systems until the end of the century.
Other countries are also introducing new weapons systems designed to have a long service life.According to ICAN, the future Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) planned by the United States are expected to remain in service beyond 2100, while increased U.S. plutonium atomic core production suggests that nuclear warheads will retain their viability until 2120.
The financial commitment will be considerable, with the United States expected to spend nearly $1 trillion on its nuclear arsenal in the decade from 2025 to 2034 alone, according to the report.
