Page 68 - ΝΑΥΤΙΚΑ ΧΡΟΝΙΚΑ - ΜΑΙΟΣ 2023

INTERNATIONAL WATERS

Russian end, namely Saint Petersburg, Novoros- By far, the sharpest rise in spending (+13 per cent)
siysk, or Sevastopol, which is in Russian-occupied was seen in Europe and was primarily accounted
Crimea. Puerto Cabello could become a hub for for by Russian and Ukrainian spending. However,
importing agricultural products from Venezuela military aid to Ukraine and concerns about a
and other parts of Latin America. The Russian heightened threat from Russia strongly influenced
Agricultural Bank, which has been cut off from the many other states’ spending decisions, as did ten-
SWIFT interbank payment system following West- sions in East Asia.
ern sanctions, has expressed interest in financing ‘The continuous rise in global military expendi-
the project. ture in recent years is a sign that we are living in
an increasingly insecure world,’ said Dr Nan Tian,
THREE TURKISH SHIPS ON THE US Senior Researcher with SIPRI’s Military Expen-
“BLACKLIST” diture and Arms Production Programme. ‘States
The United States has imposed sanctions on three are bolstering military strength in response to a
Turkish-flagged bulk carriers and the company deteriorating security environment, which they do
that owns in the White House’s attempt to cut not foresee improving in the near future.’
off Russia from the international financial system. The combined military expenditure of countries in
The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of Asia and Oceania was $575 billion. That was 2.7
the US Treasury Department proceeded with per cent more than in 2021 and 45 per cent more
sanctions against the Artvin Denizcilik ve Ticaret than in 2013, continuing an uninterrupted upward
company and three of the bulk carriers it manages, trend dating back to at least 1989.
namely “Alara”, “Ipsala” and “Ula”. China remained the world’s second-largest mili-
“As the Kremlin looks for ways to circumvent the tary spender, allocating an estimated $292 billion
extensive multilateral sanctions and export con- in 2022. This was 4.2 per cent more than in 2021
trols imposed on Russia for its war against Ukraine, and 63 per cent more than in 2013. China’s military
the United States and our allies and partners will expenditure has been increasing for 28 consec-
continue to disrupt plans that support Putin in utive years.
the field of combat,” said Brian E. Nelson, Trea- Japan’s military spending increased by 5.9 per
sury Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial
Intelligence.
The US blacklisted Artvin and its vessels due
to their connection to Pola Raiz, a St Peters-
burg-based ship-owning company. ‘Alara’, ‘Ipsala’
and ‘Ula’ were owned by Pola Rise from July to
October 2022 before being reflagged to Turkey
and owned and commercially managed by Artvin.
The technical management of the ships was under-
taken by Salda Management Denizcilik, which is
also subject to sanctions.
In addition to the three Turkish ships, sanctions
were imposed on 16 Russian-flagged ships: eleven
general cargo, three product tankers, one Ro-Ro
and one RoPax, none of whose capacity exceeds
10,000 dwt.

WORLD MILITARY EXPENDITURE REACHES
NEW RECORD HIGH AS EUROPEAN
SPENDING SURGES
Total global military expenditure increased by
3.7 per cent in real terms in 2022 to reach a new
high of $2240 billion. Military spending in Europe
saw its steepest year-on-year increase in at least
30 years. The three largest spenders in 2022—
the United States, China and Russia—accounted
for 56 per cent of the world total, according to
new data on global military spending published
recently by the Stockholm International Peace
Research Institute (SIPRI).

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