A report this week in the Economist revealed that Israel has the highest per capita spending on defense in the world. Israel’s total defense expenditure in 2008 was $16.2 billion, or a ratio of more than $2,300 per person. The United States posted the second largest ratio at $2,000 per person.
The U.S.’s $607 billion made it the largest overall defense spender and owner of 41.5 percent of the $1.46 trillion spent worldwide on defense needs. China increased its expenditure by 10 percent in 2008 to $85 billion to become the second highest global spender.