The global military expenditure report released by Sweden's Stockholm International Peace Research Institute on the 22nd shows that military conflict and heightened geopolitical tension led to a surge in global military spending last year. According to the report, total global military spending reached 2.4 trillion US dollars in 2023, an actual increase of 6.8% over 2022. This is the biggest year-on-year increase since 2009. In 2023, the US will still be the country with the largest military spending, reaching 916 billion US dollars. Furthermore, the total military expenditure of NATO member states reached 1.3 trillion US dollars last year, accounting for nearly 55% of the total global military expenditure; of these, the defense investment of 11 NATO member states reached or exceeded 2% of their gross domestic product. (Global Network)