NEW YORK, Sept 10 — United Nations (UN) Secretary-General António Guterres has warned that the world is spending far more on waging wars than on building peace, citing a new UN report showing that global military expenditure reached a record US$2.7 trillion (RM11.3 trillion) in 2024.
The Qatar News Agency (QNA) reported him as saying that this massive rise in military spending undermines development goals, fuels arms races, and diverts vital resources away from health, education, and other foundations of stability.
Guterres noted that in 2024, global military spending surged to a record US$2.7 trillion — the equivalent of US$334 (RM1,407.17) for every person on Earth — nearly 13 times the amount of official development assistance from the world's wealthiest nations, and 750 times the UN's regular budget.
"At the same time, our shared promise of sustainable development is 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 told the press at the UN's Headquarters on the release of the report, titled "The Security We Need: Rebalancing Military Spending for a Sustainable and Peaceful Future".
Guterres stressed that redirecting even a small portion of military expenditure could bridge critical gaps, as the path to a better future is possible if diplomacy is prioritised, transparency and accountability are ensured in defence budgets, and funding for development plans is enhanced.
He acknowledged that governments have legitimate security responsibilities — protecting civilians, safeguarding infrastructure, and addressing immediate threats — but stressed that lasting security cannot be achieved by military spending alone.
Guterres noted that the report is a call to action to rethink priorities and to rebalance global investments toward the security the world truly needs.
He warned that excessive military spending does not guarantee peace: "It often undermines it — fuelling arms races, deepening mistrust, and diverting resources from the very foundations of stability".
