The international transfers of major weapons in the past five years reached their highest volume since the end of the cold war in 1991, a Swedish think tank said on Friday.

The volume of international transfers of major weapons has grown continuously since 2004 and increased by 8.4 percent between the five-year period of 2007 to 2011 and the period of 2012 to 2016, according to a report published by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).

The transfers of major weapons in 2012 to 2016 reached their highest volume for any five-year period since the end of the cold war, the think tank said.

The flow of arms increased to Asia and Oceania and the Middle East between 2007 and 2011 and 2012 and 2016, while there was a decrease in the flow to Europe, the Americas, and Africa during the periods.

India was the world's largest importer of major arms in 2012 to 2016, accounting for 13 percent of the global total. Between period of 2007 to 2011 and period of 2012 to 2016, it increased its arms imports by 43 percent.

Imports by countries in Southeast Asia increased 6.2 percent between the two five-year periods, according to the SIPRI report.

"With no regional arms control instruments in place, states in Asia continue to expand their arsenals," Siemon Wezeman, senior researcher with the SIPRI arms and military expenditure program, was quoted as saying.

With a one-third share of global arms exports, the United States was the top arms exporter in 2012 to 2016. Its arms exports increased by 21 percent compared with the 2007 to 2011 period. Almost half of its arms exports went to the Middle East.

"The USA supplies major arms to at least 100 countries around the world, significantly more than any other supplier state," said Aude Fleurant, director of the SIPRI arms and military expenditure program.

Source: Xinhua