Yet, since the Korean War peak of 7%, global costs have declined steadily, reaching 3.5% in 1980 and about 1.7% today. Even a pessimistic outlook suggests an increase only to about 1.8% by 2050; under a more optimistic scenario, military costs could decline further, to 1.6% of GDP.
根据这些估计数字，二十世纪军事成本每年大约平均相当于GDP的5%。但是，自朝鲜战争的顶峰（7%）以来，全球成本一直在稳步下降，1980年大约为3.5%，现在为1.7%左右。即便是悲观的情景也表明，到2050年这一成本只会上升到1.8%；而在乐观情境中，军事成本将进一步下降到GDP的1.6%。