India expanded its nuclear arsenal in 2025, says SIPRI

DEFENCE

9 JUNE 2026

• India is estimated to have modestly expanded its nuclear arsenal in 2025 and continued developing new nuclear delivery systems, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) Yearbook 2026 released.
• The report estimated that India’s nuclear stockpile had increased to around 190 warheads by early 2026.
• The country had around 180 such warheads in 2025.
• SIPRI noted that New Delhi’s ongoing nuclear modernisation programme is increasingly focused on developing longer-range weapons capable of reaching targets across China, while continuing to address security concerns arising from its long-standing rivalry with Pakistan.
• The report further noted that India and Pakistan integrated cyberoperations into active military conflict for the first time during the crisis, underscoring the evolving nature of modern warfare and deterrence in South Asia.
• Beyond the nuclear domain, India retained its position as the world’s fifth-largest military spender in 2025, behind only the United States, China, Russia and Germany.
• SIPRI estimated India’s military expenditure at $92.1 billion, an increase of 8.9% over the previous year.
• India also remained the world’s second-largest importer of major arms during the 2021-25 period, accounting for 8.2% of global arms imports.
• SIPRI identified Ukraine, India, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Pakistan as the five largest arms importers, collectively accounting for 35% of global imports during the period.
• The report said all nine nuclear-armed states — the United States, Russia, the United Kingdom, France, China, India, Pakistan, North Korea, and Israel — continued to modernise their arsenals and increasingly relied on nuclear weapons as instruments of national power.
• Globally, the nine countries possessed an estimated 12,187 nuclear warheads at the start of 2026, of which around 9,745 were held in military stockpiles for potential use.