The global security landscape has deteriorated massively in recent years: the number of wars and violent armed conflicts active today is the highest since the end of World War II, erupting across the world and drawing in an unprecedented number of states and actors. From Gaza and the West Bank, Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, to Ukraine, Venezuela, Iran, and beyond, levels of violence, civilian suffering, and violations of international law have reached heinous heights, including the commission of genocide.
This surge in conflict and violence is neither accidental nor inevitable, it reflects a broader resurgence of imperialism and militarization, spearheaded by the United States, in which brute force, military might and coercion have become dominant tools of international relations. Powerful states and regional actors continue to fuel wars – not only through direct intervention but also through extensive arms transfers, strategic alliances and geopolitical competition – prioritizing narrow interests over human security and peace. Nuclear armed states have resumed a new and accelerating nuclear arms race with countries overtly shaping foreign policies around the most inhumane weapon ever created. Likewise, the proliferation of new military technologies from drones and artificial intelligence to space and sonic weaponry which are now being tested on the battlefield, have accelerated a new arms race with no international agreements or restrictions to their use.
The result is a fractured world order in which international law and multilateral institutions struggle to constrain violence and uphold basic norms. Civilians bear the brunt of this global militarization, while the systems designed to prevent atrocities and manage conflict, especially the United Nations, are increasingly undermined by – now heightened – double standards, weak enforcement, funding cuts, disregard for existing treaties, and the pervasive influence of war profiteering.
Gaza has been the most visible and atrocious example of the application of this paradigm, where we are now two and a half years into the first livestreamed genocide in human history, and with Israel’s impunity and support by the West still, for the most part, unchallenged.
This new global insecurity is being driven by ever-increasing global military expenditure. Year-upon-year record levels of military spending are increasing the risk of conflicts with no concern for the global challenges that pose real threats to people all across the world, including accelerating climate breakdown, deepening inequality, or chronically underfunded essential public services. This reveals a stark misalignment of priorities: ever more money for weapons, and ever less for human security, climate action, foreign aid, healthcare, decent jobs, housing, education, and public infrastructure. While communities face a cost of living crisis with rising inflation and a shrinking social safety net that places the heaviest burden on the working class, escalating militarization and military spending – frequently justified in the name of security – divert resources from the peaceful development that gives people meaningful employment, dignity, and safety.
War does not bring security, neither abroad nor at home. Instead, its consequences rebound domestically in highly militarized countries, manifesting in authoritarianism, repression, intensified surveillance, loss of democratic freedoms, police militarization and the aforementioned cuts to vital public services, all together generating new insecurities.
Fueled by these trends, a growing far-right promotes increasingly aggressive and openly supremacist discourses and policies, targeting precisely those most affected by these trends and intensifying a climate of fear which, in turn, paves the way for further militarization and securitization.
At the same time, accelerating militarization is reviving and expanding military service and conscription, pulling young people into systems of war rather than investing in their education, livelihoods, and future prospects.
Moreover, rising military spending is worsening the climate crisis, which alongside the threat of nuclear war represents an existential threat to humanity and the planet. Armed forces are major contributors to global greenhouse gas emissions, and have a key role in sustaining extractivism and protecting the interests of transnational corporations. Every increase in military budgets also means fewer resources for urgent climate action. But despite being part of the problem, militarization is the go-to solution of global economic and political elites. Furthermore, this paradigm erodes trust between countries, undermining the collective effort that the environmental crisis requires.
All this bears the question: How are further increases in military spending going to make us safer? These militaristic policies have been tested over and over and the result has always been war, repression and distrust. How is doing the same going to give a different result this time?
Our answer is clear, and therefore:
- We urge governments to undertake major reductions to their military expenditure and redirect those funds to social and environmental sectors, tackling the global challenges of our time and funding human security.
- We call for urgent global disarmament, the reduction of nuclear arsenals and the funds allocated to them, halting the arms trade, and ceasing arms shipments to nations embroiled in conflict, regional instability, or those systematically violating human rights and international law. We demand governments prioritize peace and justice over corporate profits gained from arms manufacturing and trading.
- We underline the need for the development of new and responsive international and regional security frameworks grounded in the shared principles of common security, human security, disarmament, and global justice. We demand governments focus on collaborative and diplomatic solutions, committing to negotiation and multilateralism, adhering to international law and disarmament treaties, and revitalizing and reforming the international conflict resolution framework of the United Nations. We urge the convening of a Fourth Special Session on Disarmament in the United Nations as agreed upon unanimously in the Pact for the Future.
- We encourage civil society at local, national, regional, and international levels to join forces and challenge the rising trend of military spending, bolster the global movement for peace and justice, and confront decision-makers who attempt to justify relentless militarism under the guise of security.
The 15th edition of the Global Days of Action on Military Spending (GDAMS) will take place from April 10 to May 9, 2026. Join us and take action!: https://demilitarize.org/