THE Philippines is not in the business of starting wars, joining the aggression of other nations, or siding with anyone. Our business is to protect our nation and deal with domestic issues. Yes, security is primordial, not war. We do not have an economy heavily reliant on defense. Taiwan is not our war. We should not side with anyone — China or the US.
Per Statista 2023, "US defense outlays amounted to $746 billion in 2022, which was about 3 percent of the US GDP. The forecast predicts an increase in defense outlays up to $1.1 trillion by 2033, which would be about 2.8 percent of US GDP." The defense was highest in 2009, when it was at 4.6 percent of GDP. The US was the No. 1 largest exporter of major arms, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) Arms Transfers Database, at 40 percent from 2018-2022 and 33 percent from 2013-2017. The five largest arms importers in 2018-2022 were India, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Australia and China. Together, they received 36 percent of the world's arms imports. In terms of regional allocation for the same period, Asia and Oceania accounted for 41 percent of global arms imports, followed by the Middle East at 31 percent, Europe at 16 percent, the Americas at 5.8 percent, and Africa at 5 percent.
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