United Nations, Sep 10 : UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged member states to rebalance military spending and development priorities.

"The evidence is clear. Excessive military spending does not guarantee peace. It often undermines it -- fueling arms races, deepening mistrust, and diverting resources from the very foundations of stability," the UN chief said, on Tuesday, at the launch of a new report, The Security We Need: Rebalancing Military Spending for a Sustainable and Peaceful Future.

"A more secure world begins by investing at least as much in fighting poverty as we do in fighting wars," Guterres said.

Global military spending surged to a record high of $2.7 trillion in 2024, nearly 13 times the amount of official development assistance from the world's wealthiest nations and 750 times the UN regular budget in 2024, he said.

He also warned that only one-fifth of Sustainable Development Goal targets is on track. The financing gap is growing, and so is the cost of inaction, Xinhua news agency reported.

The report is a call to rethink priorities and to rebalance global investments toward the security that the world truly needs, Guterres said.

Global military spending is projected to reach $4.7 trillion to 6.6 trillion by 2035 if current trends persist. The massive diversion of resources toward militarization poses a serious threat to humanity's future by undermining sustainable peace and development, according to the report.

/IANS