Global military spending increased to a record figure last year, with the conflict between Russia and Ukraine being the main reason for countries putting more money into their security, reports a Swedish organization.

According to an annual report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), the amount of money countries spent on their militaries in 2022 totaled $2.24 trillion worldwide — an all-time high.

2022 was the eighth year in a row for global military spending to rise, with spending up 3.7% from 2021. Spending in Europe alone rose 13% to $480 billion, the highest annual increase since the end of the Cold War more than 30 years ago.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which began in February 2022, is thought to be the main reason for the increase. Ukraine’s spending increased by a huge 640%, reaching $44 billion — the largest annual increase for a country ever recorded by SIPRI, which began collecting data in 1949.

Meanwhile, Russia’s spending grew an estimated 9.2% to around $86 billion, although researchers at SIPRI said this figure was uncertain.

Several countries close to Russia also recorded high military spending in 2022, with Finland — which shares a border with Russia — increasing spending by 36%. Finland joined NATO in April 2023.

The US, which was the world’s biggest military spender at $877 billion, was also the biggest contributor to military aid to Ukraine.

The next four biggest military spenders were China, Russia, India and Saudi Arabia. Sixty-three percent of the world’s military spending in 2022 came from these five countries.

Nan Tian, a researcher at SIPRI, said the continuing rise in global military spending shows “that we are living in an increasingly insecure world.”