San Francisco Examiner
Friday Sep 08, 2000
Uncle Sam: Arms merchant to the world
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Pamina Firchow and Tamar Gabelnick track U.S. arms
sales for the Federation of American Scientists in
Washington. They wrote this commentary for the
Progressive Media Project in Madison, Wis.
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By Pamina Firchow and Tamar Gabelnick
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The United States has made it a priority to help
American weapons makers export their wares. Yet the
arms industry hardly needs such aid.
According to a recent report by the Congressional
Research Service, the United States kept its large
lead in the global arms market last year. It captured
39 percent of new contracts, totaling $11.8 billion.
That's more sales volume than Russia, France, the
United Kingdom and China combined. The United States
also delivered $18.4 billion worth of arms in 1999, or
54 percent of the worldwide total.
The United States should not be promoting arms exports
in a world where most societies would rather see their
governments invest in education, jobs and health care
than in major weapons systems.
The Clinton administration pushes U.S. arms by touting
the need for compatibility with U.S. forces in
peacekeeping operations. Developing nations may be
lured by the prospect of closer ties with the U.S.
military. Unfortunately, this strategy has paid off.
For the third year in a row, the share of U.S. arms
exports to developing states was on the rise.
Secretary of Defense William Cohen's worldwide travels
often resemble arms marketing tours. In Latin America,
he encouraged Chile and Argentina to "upgrade" their
arsenals, especially fighter aircraft. In the Persian
Gulf, he has been trying to obtain support for a
"Cooperative Defense Initiative," an early warning
system that relies on the purchase of U.S. command,
control and communication as well as expensive Patriot
missiles.
And in Eastern Europe, the U.S. government is trying
to gain future paying customers by donating used
equipment. For example, it is pushing Hungary to drop
its plans to upgrade its Soviet-era MiG-29s by
donating F-16 jets � on the condition that Budapest
spend $4 million to $5 million apiece for upgrades
from U.S. contractors.
The Clinton administration has also been trying to
persuade European allies that they should be devoting
a larger part of their budgets to buying arms,
preferably American ones. Recent changes made to U.S.
arms-export regulations enable NATO members, Australia
and Japan to buy U.S. weapons more freely; some may
even be able to buy arms without an export license.
The administration doesn't see why those countries
shouldn't be able to buy U.S. missiles or fighter jets
as easily as American toasters. The Clinton
administration has put the health of the U.S. arms
industry ahead of the pressing social and economic
needs of our trading partners.
This fall, we need to question the presidential
candidates on whether they plan to continue this
misguided policy.
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