NATO countries in Europe more than doubled their arms imports in the past five years. More than 60 percent of those were purchases of US weaponry, researchers say. The United States consolidated its position as the world’s top weapons exporter — accounting for 43 percent of global exports. The findings coincide with an announcement by European Union states that they intend to strengthen the continent’s defence capabilities in response to a US foreign policy shift under President Donald Trump. But the US has been ramping up supplies of military aid to Israel (66 percent in 2020-24) since late 2023, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) says. The US is already the biggest provider of military assistance to Israel, which has been intensifying its military operations in Gaza, Lebanon, Syria and Yemen, SIPRI says. In the Middle East, arms imports by Israel remained stable between 2015-19 and2020-24, according to SIPri. The Middle East accounted for 33 percent of the world arms trade in the same period.