Defence spending and growth in Greece 1974–90: some preliminary econometric results

Abstract

During the period 1974–90 Greece has allocated an average of 6.4% of GDP to defence yearly. The Greek defence burden is currently the highest among European Union and NATO members. At the same time, the Greek economy has exhibited the lowest rates of growth and it is plagued by persistent economic problems. This paper, using disaggregated military spending data, investigates its economic effects during the period 1974–90. Preliminary results reported here are inconclusive.