London, <keyword id="19895063" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="india" source="keywords">India</keyword> remains the world's top arms importer and its imports increased by 4.7 per cent between 2014-2018 and 2019-2023, Swedish think tank <keyword id="20911372" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="sipri" source="keywords">SIPRI</keyword> said in a new report on Monday. Russia continued as India's main arms supplier, the <keyword id="20367139" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="stockholm-international-peace-research-institute" source="keywords">Stockholm International Peace Research Institute</keyword> (SIPRI) said, adding around 55 per cent of arms imports by European states in 2019-23 were supplied by the US, up from 35 per cent in 2014-18. "India was the world's top arms importer. Its arms imports increased by 4.7 per cent between 2014-18 and 2019-23," the think-tank said in a statement. "Although Russia remained India's main arms supplier (accounting for 36 per cent of its arms imports), this was the first five-year period since 1960-64 when deliveries from Russia (or the Soviet Union before 1991) made up less than half of India's arms imports," it said. According to the report, Pakistan significantly increased its arms imports (43 per cent). Pakistan was the fifth largest arms importer in 2019-23 and <keyword id="19894886" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="china" source="keywords">China</keyword> became even more dominant as its main supplier, providing 82 per cent of its arms imports, it said. Arms imports by two of China's East Asian neighbours increased, Japan's by 155 per cent and South Korea's by 6.5 per cent, it said. China's own arms imports shrank by 44 per cent, mainly as a result of substituting imported arms -- most of which came from Russia, with locally produced systems. "There is little doubt that the sustained high levels of arms imports by Japan and other US allies and partners in Asia and Oceania are largely driven by one key factor: concern over China's ambitions," said <keyword id="20911373" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="siemon-wezeman" source="keywords">Siemon Wezeman</keyword>, Senior Researcher with the SIPRI Arms Transfers Programme. "The US, which shares their perception of a Chinese threat, is a growing supplier to the region," it said. Thirty per cent of international arms transfers went to the <keyword id="19904316" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="middle-east" source="keywords">Middle East</keyword> in 2019-23. Three Middle Eastern states were among the top 10 importers in 2019-23: Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Egypt. Saudi Arabia was the world's second-largest arms importer in 2019-23, receiving 8.4 per cent of global arms imports in the period, the SIPRI said. Saudi Arabian arms imports fell by 28 per cent in 2019-23, but this was from a record level in 2014-18. Qatar increased its arms imports almost fourfold (396 per cent) between 2014-18 and 2019-23, making it the world's third biggest arms importer in 2019-23, according to the report.

India remains world's top arms importer: SIPRI report

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/5ad7ac7a38e2fcf52a8b46c0-1500/rtr4ml59.jpg" border="0" alt="india t-90 tank" data-mce-source="Reuters" data-mce-caption="Indian Army's T-90 Bhishma tanks take part in a full dress rehearsal for the Republic Day parade in New Delhi January 23, 2015." />ReutersIndian Army's T-90 Bhishma tanks take part in a full dress rehearsal for the Republic Day parade in New Delhi January 23, 2015.</div></div></div>Russia exported approximately $15 billion worth of weapons to 53 countries around the world in 2017, AFP <a href="http://www.france24.com/en/20180207-russia-sold-15-billion-worth-weapons-2017" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> in February, citing Alexander Mikheev, the CEO of Rosoboronexport.About $6.14 billion of that $15 billion was of major weaponry, including military aircraft, ships, armored vehicles, guided munitions, and more, <a href="http://armstrade.sipri.org/armstrade/page/values.php" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. SIPRI is an independent research group that collects detailed data on major weapons transfers, including the countries they're exported to and imported from. Nearly $4 billion of the $6.14 billion exported was of military aircraft, SIPRI reported. While SIPRI's data doesn't include unguided munitions, small arms, and other equipment, it's "pretty representative" of which countries are buying the most weaponry as a whole from Russia, Siemon Wezeman, a senior researcher at SIPRI, told Business Insider. Here are the 10 countries that bought the most major weaponry from Russia in 2017:

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India remains world's top arms importer: SIPRI report

PTI

The top 10 countries that bought Russia's most powerful weapons in 2017

Daniel Brown