Ranked: Here’s who buys the most weapons from the United States

The United States government has been providing Ukraine with a significant amount of military support since the beginning of the invasion over a year ago. Recently, the US has shipped 31 M1 Abrams main battle tanks for Ukraine’s use in the fall. These tanks will be added to the already extensive arsenal of weapons that the United States and its European allies have provided to the war-torn country.

Our team at CEOWORLD magazine conducted a thorough analysis of data from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute’s Arms Transfers Database to identify the top countries that purchase weapons from the U.S. government. We found that U.S. arms manufacturers have shipped over $105 billion worth of weapons globally since 2010, with most of these exports going to key allies in Asia, the Middle East, Europe, and other regions. It’s important to note that the U.S. is not the only country involved in the arms trade.

It’s worth noting that, even though the United States has the largest military budget in the world, it doesn’t have the largest number of personnel. Surprisingly, the U.S. is fifth in terms of active armed services members, behind four other countries that have at least 1 million individuals serving. Moreover, the U.S. military has recently acquired new weapons, which are the latest additions to their arsenal.

1. Saudi Arabia
   > Arms imports from US, 2010-2020: $17.61 billion
   > US arms imports as share of total, 2010-2020: 64.8%
   > Largest arms suppliers, 2016-2020: USA, UK, France
   > National military expenditure, 2020: $57.52 billion (8.4% of GDP)
2. Australia
   > Arms imports from US, 2010-2020: $9.13 billion
   > US arms imports as share of total, 2010-2020: 67.0%
   > Largest arms suppliers, 2016-2020: USA, Spain, Switzerland
   > National military expenditure, 2020: $27.54 billion (2.1% of GDP)
3. South Korea
   > Arms imports from US, 2010-2020: $7.82 billion
   > US arms imports as share of total, 2010-2020: 70.3%
   > Largest arms suppliers, 2016-2020: USA, Germany, Spain
   > National military expenditure, 2020: $45.74 billion (2.8% of GDP)
4. UAE
   > Arms imports from US, 2010-2020: $7.11 billion
   > US arms imports as share of total, 2010-2020: 61.4%
   > Largest arms suppliers, 2016-2020: USA, France, Russia
   > National military expenditure, 2020: N/A (0.0% of GDP)
5. Japan
   > Arms imports from US, 2010-2020: $4.52 billion
   > US arms imports as share of total, 2010-2020: 94.0%
   > Largest arms suppliers, 2016-2020: USA, UK, Sweden
   > National military expenditure, 2020: $49.15 billion (1.0% of GDP)
6. India
   > Arms imports from US, 2010-2020: $4.22 billion
   > US arms imports as share of total, 2010-2020: 14.2%
   > Largest arms suppliers, 2016-2020: Russia, France, Israel
   > National military expenditure, 2020: $72.89 billion (2.9% of GDP)
7. United Kingdom
   > Arms imports from US, 2010-2020: $3.88 billion
   > US arms imports as share of total, 2010-2020: 71.4%
   > Largest arms suppliers, 2016-2020: USA, Spain, Germany
   > National military expenditure, 2020: $59.24 billion (2.2% of GDP)
8. Iraq
   > Arms imports from US, 2010-2020: $3.87 billion
   > US arms imports as share of total, 2010-2020: 51.7%
   > Largest arms suppliers, 2016-2020: USA, Russia, South Korea
   > National military expenditure, 2020: $7.02 billion (4.1% of GDP)
9. Taiwan
   > Arms imports from US, 2010-2020: $3.70 billion
   > US arms imports as share of total, 2010-2020: 96.7%
   > Largest arms suppliers, 2016-2020: USA
   > National military expenditure, 2020: $12.15 billion (1.9% of GDP)
10. Turkey
    > Arms imports from US, 2010-2020: $3.70 billion
    > US arms imports as share of total, 2010-2020: 48.6%
    > Largest arms suppliers, 2016-2020: USA, Italy, Spain
    > National military expenditure, 2020: $17.72 billion (2.8% of GDP)
11. Qatar
    > Arms imports from US, 2010-2020: $3.33 billion
    > US arms imports as share of total, 2010-2020: 51.0%
    > Largest arms suppliers, 2016-2020: USA, France, Germany
    > National military expenditure, 2020: N/A (0.0% of GDP)
12. Singapore
    > Arms imports from US, 2010-2020: $3.15 billion
    > US arms imports as share of total, 2010-2020: 53.2%
    > Largest arms suppliers, 2016-2020: USA, Spain, France
    > National military expenditure, 2020: $10.86 billion (3.2% of GDP)
13. Israel
    > Arms imports from US, 2010-2020: $3.09 billion
    > US arms imports as share of total, 2010-2020: 70.1%
    > Largest arms suppliers, 2016-2020: USA, Germany, Italy
    > National military expenditure, 2020: $21.70 billion (5.6% of GDP)
14. Afghanistan
    > Arms imports from US, 2010-2020: $2.72 billion
    > US arms imports as share of total, 2010-2020: 76.0%
    > Largest arms suppliers, 2016-2020: USA, Brazil, Belarus
    > National military expenditure, 2020: $0.28 billion (1.4% of GDP)
15. Egypt
    > Arms imports from US, 2010-2020: $2.56 billion
    > US arms imports as share of total, 2010-2020: 20.9%
    > Largest arms suppliers, 2016-2020: Russia, France, USA
    > National military expenditure, 2020: $4.51 billion (1.2% of GDP)
16. Pakistan
    > Arms imports from US, 2010-2020: $2.10 billion
    > US arms imports as share of total, 2010-2020: 19.5%
    > Largest arms suppliers, 2016-2020: China, Russia, Italy
    > National military expenditure, 2020: $10.38 billion (4.0% of GDP)
17. Morocco
    > Arms imports from US, 2010-2020: $2.09 billion
    > US arms imports as share of total, 2010-2020: 46.6%
    > Largest arms suppliers, 2016-2020: USA, France, UK
    > National military expenditure, 2020: $4.83 billion (4.3% of GDP)
18. Italy
    > Arms imports from US, 2010-2020: $2.06 billion
    > US arms imports as share of total, 2010-2020: 64.4%
    > Largest arms suppliers, 2016-2020: USA, Germany, Italy
    > National military expenditure, 2020: $28.92 billion (1.6% of GDP)
19. Canada
    > Arms imports from US, 2010-2020: $1.90 billion
    > US arms imports as share of total, 2010-2020: 68.2%
    > Largest arms suppliers, 2016-2020: USA, Australia, Israel
    > National military expenditure, 2020: $22.75 billion (1.4% of GDP)
20. Norway
    > Arms imports from US, 2010-2020: $1.83 billion
    > US arms imports as share of total, 2010-2020: 61.4%
    > Largest arms suppliers, 2016-2020: USA, South Korea, Italy
    > National military expenditure, 2020: $7.11 billion (1.9% of GDP)
21. Netherlands
    > Arms imports from US, 2010-2020: $1.55 billion
    > US arms imports as share of total, 2010-2020: 63.7%
    > Largest arms suppliers, 2016-2020: USA, Germany, Italy
    > National military expenditure, 2020: $12.58 billion (1.4% of GDP)
22. Kuwait
    > Arms imports from US, 2010-2020: $1.37 billion
    > US arms imports as share of total, 2010-2020: 75.4%
    > Largest arms suppliers, 2016-2020: N/A
    > National military expenditure, 2020: $6.94 billion (6.5% of GDP)
23. Indonesia
    > Arms imports from US, 2010-2020: $0.89 billion
    > US arms imports as share of total, 2010-2020: 16.3%
    > Largest arms suppliers, 2016-2020: USA, Netherlands, South Korea
    > National military expenditure, 2020: $9.40 billion (0.9% of GDP)
24. Mexico
    > Arms imports from US, 2010-2020: $0.81 billion
    > US arms imports as share of total, 2010-2020: 43.4%
    > Largest arms suppliers, 2016-2020: USA, Netherlands, France
    > National military expenditure, 2020: $6.12 billion (0.6% of GDP)
25. Oman
    > Arms imports from US, 2010-2020: $0.78 billion
    > US arms imports as share of total, 2010-2020: 24.7%
    > Largest arms suppliers, 2016-2020: UK, USA, Turkey
    > National military expenditure, 2020: $6.73 billion (10.9% of GDP)

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