Arms sales hit record

Global arms sales over the past five years reached their highest level since 1990, with India continuing to be the world’s largest defence importer, a report from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute says. Between 2012 and 2016, India accounted for 13 per cent of global arms imports, followed by Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, China and Algeria. From 2012-16, Saudi Arabia’s arms imports increased by 212 per cent compared with the previous five years, accounting for 8.2 per cent of global imports. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has pledged US$250 billion to modernise his country’s ageing military equipment, from fighter jets to guns and submarines.