Country spends $50 billion on missiles, not planes

The trend of increasing defense budgets has been noticed in the past year, primarily from European Union countries, but it is now spreading globally. European countries are supporting Ukraine in acquiring UAVs, while a major Israeli customer is also purchasing from India, and Polaris company is introducing new military snowmobiles. This information will be discussed in the weekly security update.

Latvia is set to provide Ukraine with their first quota of unmanned aerial vehicles through the Ukraine First Defense Group (UDCG), a coalition that includes NATO allies, the European Union, and other partners working together to provide aid to Kyiv. In response to the use of UAVs in the Russia-Ukraine war, several countries, including Latvia, Sweden, and Great Britain, have initiated a plan to increase UAV supplies to Ukraine. A total of 14 countries have committed to supplying UAVs to Kiev, with Latvia allocating an annual budget of around 10 million euros to support this initiative.

In the Asia-Pacific region, Israel has been a leading supplier of defense imports to the Philippines, accounting for 12% of their total defense imports between 2019-2023. The Philippine army is focusing on acquiring medium-range BrahMos cruise missiles from India as part of the Horizon 2 program to strengthen their military forces against threats in the western Philippine Sea.

Polaris, a renowned manufacturer of ATVs and Rangers, has launched two advanced snowmobiles for military use: the 650 Titan 155 and the 850 Pro RMK 155 as part of the 2025 models. These snowmobiles are equipped with features for military activities, including the ability to carry fighters and baggage, as well as quick mission capabilities.

The Australian government has announced a significant increase in defense budget with a focus on deterrence and amphibious warfare in the Pacific. The defense budget is set to grow by 50.3 billion US dollars over the next decade, reaching about 100 billion US dollars by 2033. As part of this change, the government will cut various planned programs, including the purchase of an additional F-35 squadron, and plans to invest in long-range missiles such as the Tomahawk.

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