Anxiety over Iran drives GCC arms imports


In depth
Issue 989 - 19 Mar 2015 | 7 minute read

Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) efforts to expand an already formidable arsenal of high-tech weaponry stepped up a notch in 2014 when, according to a study by respected defence specialist IHS Jane’s, Saudi Arabia overtook India to become the world’s largest importer of weapons and defence systems. Riyadh spent $6.4bn on defence imports in 2014, 54% more than the previous year, and more than all the other GCC states combined. According to the IHS Jane’s report published on 8 March, the UAE spent $2.2bn on defence imports in 2014, Oman and Kuwait each spent $1.1bn, and Qatar and Bahrain spent $573m and $73m respectively.

Tagged with:

Pin Defence & security

Want to read more?

Extra Large Article

£595

(Access to one GSN article)

Subscribe to Gulf States Newsletter

View subscription options

Join our community

Sign up for an account to gain:

  • Set up news alerts on the countries and sectors that matter to you.
  • Free access to newsletter articles under 100 words.
  • Free access to GSN View articles articles.


View a selection of Free articles

Explore subscription options

Follow us on Google News