Saudi Arabia will reportedly increase military spending by almost a quarter over the next five years, according to a report by IHS Jane’s.
The Gulf kingdom is forecast to boost its arms budget to $60 billion by 2020 from a current level of $49 billion, following a slowdown in the short-term caused by the lower price of oil, reported Bloomberg which cited the study.
The report said the increase in spending will make Saudi Arabia the world’s fifth-largest military spender, up from eighth.
“Despite Saudi Arabia’s heavy exposure to oil-price fluctuations there have been very few signs of any severe reactionary adjustments to government spending. Longer-term prospects remain strong,” it quoted Craig Caffrey, principal defence budget analyst at IHS, as saying.
Saudi Arabia currently heads a coalition of predominantly Sunni nations fighting Houthi rebels in Yemen it says are backed by Iran, and is part of a US-led coalition carrying out air strikes against ISIL fighters in Syria, along with Jordan, Bahrain and the UAE.
The Middle East is likely to present $110 billion in military-export opportunities in the coming decade, Bloomberg added.
In April, a report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) said Saudi Arabia, which is currently leading a coalition of allies fighting Houthi rebels in Yemen, oversaw one of the largest increases in military spending in 2014.
The Gulf kingdom’s defence spending rose by 17 percent compared to the previous year, according to figures released by SIPRI.
Globally, Saudi Arabia was named the fourth largest military spender — behind the US, China, and Russia – who all substantially increased their military expenditures last year.
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