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Russia's Su-57 stealth fighter is at the 2024 Zhuhai Air Show in Zhuhai, China, on November 14, 2024.
Hard Numbers: New records set in global defense spending and journalist deaths, Danes joke about buying California, Japan may u-turn on nuclear energy
2,460,000,000,000: In 2024, global defense spending rose to a new height of $2.46 trillion, according to the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies think tank. Worth noting: In purchasing power parity, the Kremlin outpaced all other European countries combined. Russia’s military expenditure equated $461.6 billion in purchase parity terms, eclipsing Europe’s $457 billion.
124: 2024 was the deadliest year for journalists on record since the Committee to Protect Journalists started tracking more than 30 years ago. At least 124 media workers were killed last year — nearly two-thirds of them in Gaza. The next deadliest nations were Sudan and Pakistan, with six deaths each.
200,000: A deeply unserious campaign for Denmark to purchase California from the United States gained significant traction online this week, following President Donald Trump’s repeated calls to purchase Greenland, an autonomous Danish territory. So far, more than 200,000 people have signed the virtual petition to “Måke Califørnia Great Ægain.”
14: Nearly 14 after an earthquake and tsunami led to a triple meltdown at the Fukushima power plant, the Japanese government is considering an about-face on its plans to limit reliance on nuclear power. A draft strategic energy plan from the trade and industry ministry calls for a “maximization” of nuclear power to help reach its emissions and energy security targets. The plan calls for around 20% to stem from nuclear reactors by 2040, 40-50% from renewables, and 30-40% from coal (down from 70% at present).
Russian President Vladimir Putin shakes hands with Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu
Russian military makes swift advance
Fresh off their conquest of the town of Avdiivka in Eastern Ukraine, Russian forces are continuing to make advances against Kyiv’s increasingly taxed troops.
Since the end of February, Russian troops have reportedly pushed an additional two miles beyond Avdiivka. That may not sound like much, but as Al Jazeera gamely pointed out, two miles in a week is a proper hare’s pace for a Russian military that spent four months (and as many as 16,000 casualties) just to advance 5 miles to Avdiivka itself.
The fresh push suggests Vladimir Putin is seizing the moment strategically and politically. With US aid to Kyiv deadlocked in Congress, Ukraine is struggling to find fresh recruits and apportion dwindling munitions. Meanwhile, with his “election” approaching in two weeks, Putin will happily peacock a few extra bits of Russian-controlled territory in Ukraine.
All of which throws the spotlight back on the US. Without further aid, Kyiv’s military position is expected to deteriorate rapidly in the coming months. In that event, the prospect of some kind of partition of Ukraine – a top risk flagged by our friends at Eurasia Group this year – would start to look inevitable.