The independent resource on global security
Backgrounders
Social media: A tool for peace or conflict?
Dr Simone BunseHuman rights activists have used social media technology to organize peaceful protests and defend democracy for more than a decade. More recently, peacebuilders have discovered it can be a tool to understand conflict dynamics and counter extremism better.
Estimating world nuclear forces: An overview and assessment of sources
Hans M. Kristensen and Matt KordaThe nuclear weapon inventories of the nine-nuclear armed states—the United States, Russia, the United Kingdom, France, China, Israel and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK or North Korea)—are largely shrouded in secrecy: only three of the nine states have ever publicly declared the size of their nuclear stockpiles and in recent years there has been a notable shift towards a lower overall level of nuclear weapon-related transparency.
Multilateral peace operations in 2020: Developments and trends
Timo SmitAhead of the International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers, SIPRI is releasing new data on multilateral peace operations. This topical backgrounder summarizes the key findings from the latest data and some of the most important developments in 2020.
Arms transfers to conflict zones: The case of Nagorno-Karabakh
Pieter D. Wezeman, Alexandra Kuimova and Jordan SmithThe conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh escalated in 2020 into a six-week war in which an estimated 5700 people died.
Why United Nations peace operations cannot ignore climate change
Dr Florian KrampeOn 23 February the United Nations (UN) Security Council will hold an open session on the topic of climate change and security. The security implications of climate change are highly diverse, crossing and linking different sectors of society.
Reassessing SIPRI’s military expenditure estimate for the United Kingdom
Dr Nan Tian and Dr Lucie Béraud-SudreauIn November 2020, in the midst of the ‘second wave’ of COVID-19 and despite a projected
European Union sanctions on North Korea: Balancing non-proliferation with the humanitarian impact
Kolja BrockmannThe international sanctions regime against the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea, DPRK) is the strongest and most comprehensive set of sanctions currently in effect against any one country.
Autocracy is on the rise: Should we expect military spending to follow?
Dr Diego Lopes da SilvaAutocracies are once again the global majority.
Starve nuclear weapons to death with a tritium freeze
Robert E. KelleyA freeze on the production of tritium is a different way to manage disarmament that will gradually bring an end to nuclear weapons.
The impact of COVID-19 on critical global food supply chains and food security
Dr Jiayi Zhou and Dr Caroline DelgadoA full account of the human consequences of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, beyond the immediate health effects, remains to be seen. However, it is clear that the global economic recession and physical, economic and social disruption are being borne by the most vulnerable.