2025 nuclear weapons spending hit $118.8 billion as wars, modernization plans and economic strain pushed nuclear arsenals to the top of military budgets. Global spending on nuclear weapons reached $118.8 billion last year, according to a report by Nuclear. This represents a 19% increase from the prior year, breaking previous spending records.
The cost in human terms
Each minute of nuclear weapons spending could give 3,478 people access to clean water and sanitation. A single day’s expenditures could shield 2 million people from hunger. A week could secure life-saving vaccines for more than 12 billion people. Yet, nations continue to divert money from humanitarian aid to nuclear programs.
The false logic of deterrence
ICAN’s Susi Snyder called it a “false promise of security,” noting that nuclear weapons can’t be used without global catastrophe. Alicia Sanders-Zakre added that nuclear modernization plans are decades long and continue to siphon money away from basic human needs. The U.S. As the humanitarian sector faces funding cuts, countries are redirecting billions to nuclear rearmament, conventional and nuclear alike.
Geopolitical flashpoints and rising tensions
The world is at its highest nuclear risk since the Cold War. Current wars involve nuclear-armed states like Russia in Ukraine, and Iran in its regional conflicts. India and Pakistan remain locked in tension, and the Korean Peninsula remains a constant hotspot. Modernization, expansion and deterrence logic are driving global instability higher.