India is believed to have once again slightly expanded its nuclear arsenal in 2025 and continued development of new types of nuclear delivery systems.
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Big tension for Pakistan as India expands lead in nuclear warheads, military spending hits USD 92.1 billion | Image: ANI
New Delhi: India slightly increased its nuclear stockpile in 2025 and continued developing new nuclear-capable delivery systems, a report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) stated. According to the SIPRI Yearbook 2026, which was released today, New Delhi is very serious about developing long-range weapons capable of reaching targets in China. Planning is underway with a focus on India’s long-standing rivalry with Pakistan. by the Stockholm-based think tank SIPRI.
India Remains World’s Fifth-Largest Military Spender, Second-Largest Arms Importer
India’s military expenditure reached $92.1 billion in 2025, marking an 8.9 per cent jump, only the US, China, Russia and Germany in defence spending.
SIPRI has also identified 162 countries as recipients of major arms in 2021-25. The five largest recipients were Ukraine, India, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Pakistan, which together accounted for 35 per cent of total arms imports in the period. India accounted for 8.2 percent of global arms imports, making it the world’s second-largest arms importer during the 2021-25 period.
SIPRI Warns Nuclear Powers Are Increasingly Relying On Atomic Weapons Amid Rising Global Tensions.
Key findings of SIPRI Yearbook 2026 are that the nine nuclear-armed countries -the United States, Russia, the United Kingdom, France, China, India, Pakistan, North Korea and Israel- are increasingly relying on nuclear weapons as instruments of national power, reversing decades of efforts to reduce the numbers and role of nuclear weapons, even as the risks of miscalculation and escalation are rising.
Nearly 9,745 Nuclear Warheads Were Kept In Military Stockpiles For Potential Use In 2026
Of the total global inventory of an estimated 12,187 warheads in January 2026, about 9745 were in military stockpiles for potential use.
SIPRI estimates that India’s nuclear arsenal has grown to approximately 190 warheads by early 2026.
Meanwhile, Pakistan, the SIPRI report stated, continued to develop new delivery systems and accumulate fissile material in 2025, suggesting that its nuclear arsenal might expand over the coming decade.
At the start of 2026, nine countries US, Russia, UK, France, China, India, Pakistan, North Korea and Israel- together possessed approximately 12,187 nuclear weapons, of which 9745 were in military stockpiles and considered to be potentially operationally available. An estimated 4012 of these stockpiled warheads were deployed with operational forces, with just over half thought to be kept in a state of high operational alert on ballistic missiles (2100-2200 warheads), the SIPRI report detailed.
“Overall, the number of nuclear warheads in the world continues to decline, but this is only due to the USA and Russia dismantling retired warheads. Notably, the number of warheads being dismantled annually appears to be decreasing and it seems likely that the rate at which retired warheads are dismantled will soon be outpaced by the rate at which new warheads enter global stockpiles,” SIPRI said.
The US and Russia together possess almost 86 per cent of all nuclear warheads, and both have extensive nuclear modernisation programmes underway. China is also in the middle of a significant modernization and expansion of its nuclear arsenal, which is estimated to have increased from 600 to up to 620 warheads during the year.
The explosive material utilised in nuclear weapons is fissile material, either highly enriched uranium (HEU) or separated plutonium and as per the SIPRI report India and Israel have produced mainly plutonium.
SIPRI Said The Number Of Interstate Conflicts Doubled In 2025, Involving At Least 13 Countries
The SIPRI report noted that the number of interstate armed conflicts doubled from three in 2024 to six in 2025 and involved at least 13 countries: Afghanistan-Pakistan; Cambodia-Thailand; India-Pakistan; Iran- Israel/United States; Russia/North Korea-Ukraine; and Congo-Rwanda.
Karim Haggag, Director of SIPRI in his introduction to the report,, stated, “The most recent decade has fundamentally altered the strategic environment. The distinguishing feature of this current phase of great power competition relates to two overarching drivers: the resurgence of large-scale interstate war between technologically advanced states and the erosion of the United States’ alliance frameworks.”
According to Haggag, the security situation in Asia and Oceania last year continued to be shaped by growing strategic rivalry between China and the United States.
(with ANI inputs)
