Weapons exporters. The arms market has reached its highest level since the Cold War in five years. Largest Russian companies

STOCKHOLM, December 11. /TASS/. Global arms sales increased for the first time in five years, while Russian arms manufacturers continued to increase sales in 2016. This is evidenced by data from a report on the state of military production and exports in the world, published on Monday by the Stockholm Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).

Trade volume up, US back in the lead

In 2016, the top 100 companies had sales of $374.8 billion, up 1.9% from the previous year and up 38% from 2002, when SIPRI began tracking this statistic. Thus, 2016 became the first year to show growth after a five-year decline.

US companies increased their share in the total sales of the “first hundred” by 4% - to $217.2 billion. The reason for this was the military operations of the US Army outside its country and large purchases of American military equipment by other states. The decisive role here was played by the world's largest arms manufacturer, Lockheed Martin, which showed an increase of 10.7%, which brought the United States to the level of 57.9% of the total volume of the top 100 companies.

“With the purchase of helicopter manufacturer Sikorsky at the end of 2015 and the increase in deliveries of F-35 military aircraft, Lockheed Martin showed a strong increase in sales in 2016,” said Aude Fleurant, director of the SIPRI weapons and military expenditure program.

Largest Russian companies

The authors of the report note the continued growth in sales of Russian defense companies, which, however, shows a downward trend. The total volume of arms supplies from the largest Russian manufacturers included in the top 100 by SIPRI increased by 3.8% last year and amounted to $26.6 billion - 7.1% of the total volume of the ranking participants.

In the top ten Russian companies included in the SIPRI top 100, the vectors of current development are multidirectional: five companies showed an increase in sales volumes, while the other five showed a decrease. “The general economic problems experienced by Russia in 2016 contributed to a slowdown in the growth rate of military sales by Russian companies,” says Simon Wezeman, senior researcher at SIPRI.

The largest of them, United Aircraft Corporation, ranked 13th in the top 100, increased its volumes by 15.6% compared to 2015 and is likely to continue this trend in the future due to Russian supplies and increased exports.

United Shipbuilding Corporation was in 19th place. The first hundred also included the Almaz-Antey concern - at 24th, the Russian Helicopters holding - at 29th, the Tactical Missile Weapons Corporation - 35th, NPO High Precision Complexes - 44th, United Engine Corporation - 50th. Uralvagonzavod was in 52nd position, Radioelectronic Technologies and Sukhoi Concern were in 53rd position, United Instrument-Making Corporation was in 56th position, Irkut Corporation was in 63rd position, and PJSC UMPO was in 77th position.

Stability in Western Europe

Sales volumes of Western European manufacturing companies included in the “top hundred” remained stable and amounted to $91.6 billion in 2016, which is only 0.2% more than in 2015. However, there are some changes in trends. While British and German companies increased their volumes, other Western European countries, including French and Italian, showed some decline.

In Germany, the 6.6% rise was mainly due to sales of armored vehicles produced by Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (12.8%) and ground vehicles by Rheinmetall (13.3%), according to SIPRI senior researcher Peter Wesemann. At the same time, both manufacturers actively worked in the markets of Europe, the Middle East and Southeast Asia.

The report notes that Brexit did not significantly affect military sales of British companies, which increased by 2% in 2016 compared to 2015. Turnover at defense company BAE Systems, the world's fourth largest, remained virtually unchanged, up just 0.4%.

New manufacturers

As for new producers from other countries, which include South Korea, Brazil, India and Turkey, the Republic of Korea occupies a leading position. In 2016, it showed an increase of 20.6%; in monetary terms, its sales amounted to $8.4 billion.

“The perception of ongoing old and emerging new threats is the driving force behind South Korean purchases of military equipment and increasing the pace of meeting its military needs through its own military-industrial complex. At the same time, South Korea has set itself the goal of becoming a major arms exporter,” Wesenthal notes.

In connection with the publication of data on the supply of main types of conventional weapons and military equipment from 2011 to 2015.

The institute's database covers the period since 1950, and in describing trends in international military transfers, institute experts use five-year averages.

According to the ranking published by SIPRI, the top five largest arms suppliers, as before, continue to be headed by the United States, which accounts for 33% of the share of global arms exports. SIPRI analysts call Saudi Arabia (9.7%), the United Arab Emirates (9.1%) and Turkey (6.6%) the main clients of the United States.

According to SIPRI, the largest recipient region of American weapons was the Middle East, which accounted for 41% of US exports. For countries in Asia and Oceania - 40%.

Salon: The United States has become the leader in the arms market at the expense of extremistsThe United States maintains leadership in the international arms market, but a significant part of its supplies goes to the Persian Gulf countries, which actively support Islamist extremist groups, the publication notes.

In general, supplies of major types of conventional weapons from the United States over the past five years have increased by 27% compared to 2006-2010.

Second place in the list of largest exporters, as in the previous five-year period, was given to Russia - its share in international arms exports amounted to 25%. In general, the authors of the report note, exports of the main types of conventional weapons from Russia increased by 28% between 2006-2010 and 2011-2015. At the same time, the authors of the report noted a trend toward a slowdown in exports from Russia in 2014 and 2015.

According to SIPRI, three countries have become the main recipients of Russian weapons over the past five years - India (39%), China (11%) and Vietnam (11%).

In general, about 68% of Russian arms exports in the period from 2011 to 2015 went to countries in Asia and Oceania.

Moscow also managed to gain a foothold in the European arms market (6.4%), while SIPRI notes an increase in supplies to Europe by 264%.

Media: due to the crisis between the Koreas, the United States sold weapons for a record amountThe United States occupied half of the world arms market, earning more than $36 billion in this industry. South Korea became the main buyer of military equipment.

For the second period in a row, the third place among the largest exporters in the published SIPRI list is occupied by China (5.9% in global exports), France is in fourth place (5.6%) and Germany rounds out the top five (4.7%).

Exports from these five countries combined accounted for almost 74% of the global total from 2011 to 2015, as in the previous five-year period.

Overall, international supplies of major conventional weapons increased by 14% from 2011 to 2015 compared to the previous five-year period.

Where were the weapons sent?

According to SIPRI, the top ten largest arms importers over the past five years included six countries in Asia and Oceania - India, China, Australia, Pakistan, Vietnam and South Korea.

“China continues to expand its military capabilities by importing and producing domestic weapons,” said SIPRI researcher Simon Wezeman, commenting on the published data. According to him, "China's neighboring countries - India, Vietnam and Japan - have also significantly strengthened their armed forces."

The top five largest arms recipients, as according to the previous five-year plan, are India (14% in the share of world imports), followed by Saudi Arabia (7.0%), China (4.7%), and the United Arab Emirates (4.6 %) and rounds out the top five with Australia (3.6%).

In general, these five countries accounted for 34% of the total arms imports.

The Arms Transfers Database includes available information on all international transfers of major conventional weapons, including sales, gifts, and licensed production. The data reflects supply volumes without taking into account the financial value of transactions.

The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute SIPRI was founded in 1966 and is an independent think tank dedicated to research on conflict, arms, arms control and disarmament.

According to the Stockholm Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), global sales of military products in 2012-2016 increased by 8.4% compared to the previous five-year period. Humanity continues to arm itself, and the sale of military equipment and equipment continues to be an important part of the exports and economic potential of a number of countries. Which only confirms that in war they not only kill, but also sell and make money. At the same time, the United States and Russia remain the main suppliers of weapons on the planet, collectively occupying more than 58% of the entire global trade market.

SIPRI (Stockholm International Peace Research Institute) is an international institute for the study of peace and conflict issues, which primarily deals with issues of arms control and disarmament processes. According to specialists from this institute, the United States controls about a third of the entire global arms market, with almost half of all supplies coming from the Middle East. Russia controls more than 23% of the world market. According to SIPRI Institute estimates, about 70% of Russian supplies come from 4 countries: India, China, Vietnam and Algeria.

At the same time, based on the results of 2012-2016, Beijing managed to increase the share of supplied weapons on the international market from 3.8% to 6.2%. At the same time, India remains the world's largest importer of weapons on the planet, which over the specified period increased purchases in this area by 43% compared to 2007-2011. Saudi Arabia ranks second in arms imports. It is worth noting that India is the largest buyer of Russian weapons in the world, and Saudi Arabia is the largest buyer of American-made weapons.

In Africa, 46% of all imports of weapons and military equipment come from Algeria (which is one of the Top 5 buyers of Russian weapons). Other major importers, according to Swedish researchers, are located in zones of long-standing armed conflicts: Ethiopia, Sudan and Nigeria. The African market is quite important for China, which supplies its own weapons to 18 African countries, with Tanzania closing the Top 5 countries that purchase weapons from the Middle Kingdom.

In mid-April 2017, the site published material about the four largest arms exporters in the world (USA, Russia, France and China). The material is based on data from the Stockholm Peace Research Institute for 2011-2015. The article compares the world's largest arms exporters on the planet, as well as their largest buyers, and also presents graphic materials revealing the direction of supplies. At the same time, the map compilers did not take into account countries that purchased weapons worth less than $100 million during the specified period. Swedish experts also noted that for 2011-2015, the total volume of arms sales was higher than in any other five-year period since the end of the Cold War in the early 90s of the 20th century.

Currently, the United States is not only the leader in military spending ($611 billion at the end of 2016), but also the main exporter of arms on the planet. American guns sell the best in the world, with states ahead of other countries by a significant margin. During 2011-2015, the United States sold various weapons worth $46.4 billion, which is almost a third of the total volume of the international arms market (32.8%). Immediately following the United States is Russia, whose exports for the same period are estimated by SIPRI experts at $35.4 billion (or 25.4% of world exports). The indicators of the world's two largest arms exporters individually are higher than the combined exports of the countries occupying third and fourth place in the ranking: France with arms exports of $8.1 billion and China with $7.9 billion.

Over the same time period (2011-2015), the largest importers of weapons on the planet became, in descending order: India, Saudi Arabia, China, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Australia.

The largest buyers of American weapons

Arms supply flows make it possible to assess the geopolitical priorities of the largest exporting countries. Thus, the geopolitical interests of the United States, apparently, lie in the Middle East. The top five largest buyers of American weapons and military equipment, in descending order, are: Saudi Arabia - $4.57 billion, UAE - $4.2 billion, Turkey - $3.1 billion, South Korea - $3.1 billion and Australia - $2.92 billion. In total, the United States has sold more than $100 million in weapons to 42 countries, many of which are also in the Middle East.

The Top 10 buyers of American weapons, in addition to the countries listed above, include: Taiwan (Republic of China) - $2.83 billion, India - $2.76 billion, Singapore - $2.32 billion, Iraq - $2.1 billion and Egypt - $1.6 billion.

The largest buyers of Russian weapons

The bilateral relations that exist today between Russia and India are characterized by the largest indicators in the field of arms supplies in the whole world. Over the five years from 2011 to 2015 inclusive, India purchased Russian-made weapons worth $13.4 billion. China, which itself is one of the largest arms exporters in the world, is in second place in terms of the volume of purchases of Russian weapons. During this period, Beijing purchased $3.8 billion worth of weapons from Russia. In third place, with a slight lag, is Vietnam - $3.7 billion; Algeria and Venezuela are in fourth and fifth place, respectively, with indicators of $2.64 and $1.9 billion, respectively.

The Top 10 buyers of Russian weapons, in addition to the countries listed above, included: Azerbaijan - $1.8 billion, Syria - $983 million, Iraq - $853 million, Myanmar - $619 million and Uganda - $616 million. In general, during 2011-2015, Russia sold weapons worth more than $100 million to 24 countries. Russia also supplied weapons to India’s military-political rival, Pakistan, but these supplies were much smaller, only $134 million (23rd place in the ranking); even Afghanistan, which is Pakistan’s geographic neighbor, purchased many times more Russian weapons - $441 million dollars (14th place in the ranking).

The largest buyers of French weapons

While Russia actively sells weapons to Algeria, Morocco's neighbor and competitor, France supplies weapons to it, this North African country is the main buyer of French weapons in the world. The top five largest buyers of French weapons and military equipment, in descending order, were: Morocco - $1.3 billion, China - $1 billion, Egypt - $759 million, UAE - $548 million and Saudi Arabia - $521 million. It can be noted that the interests of France, like the United States, gravitate towards the Middle East, where very large buyers of French weapons are concentrated.

The top 10 buyers of French weapons also included: Australia - $361 million, India - $337 million, USA - $327 million, Oman - $245 million and Great Britain - $207 million. In total, during the specified period from 2011 to 2015 inclusive, France sold weapons worth more than $100 million to 17 countries.

The largest buyers of Chinese weapons

While Russia is India's largest arms supplier, China is arming neighboring countries: Pakistan, which is the largest buyer of Chinese-made military equipment, as well as Bangladesh and Myanmar. The top five largest buyers of Chinese weapons and military equipment, in descending order, are: Pakistan - $3 billion, Bangladesh - $1.4 billion, Myanmar - $971 million, Venezuela - $373 million, Tanzania - $323 million.

In general, in 2011-2015, China sold weapons worth more than $100 million to 10 countries, so in addition to the countries listed above, the Top 10 buyers of Chinese weapons included: Algeria - $314 million, Indonesia - $237 million, Cameroon - $198 million, Sudan - $134 million and Iran - $112 million.

Based on the data presented, it is obvious that in the near future the main competition in the international arms market for third place in terms of supplies will be between France and China. At the same time, the latter has every chance of reaching a solid third place in the very near future. At the same time, the USA and Russia will absolutely retain first and second places in the ranking with a significant gap from their pursuers.

According to experts, the export of Russian weapons at the end of 2017 will significantly exceed the figures for 2016. Viktor Kladov, who holds the post of director for international cooperation and regional policy at the state corporation Rostec, told reporters about this at the 14th international naval and aerospace exhibition LIMA 2017, which was held in Malaysia from March 21 to 25. also the heads of the joint delegation of the state corporation and JSC Rosoboronexport at this exhibition. According to Kladov, Rosoboronexport’s order portfolio currently amounts to about $45 billion, which allows the enterprises of the Russian defense industry to be loaded for three years of continuous operation, and the number of contracts in 2017 will exceed the number of contracts in 2016.

India will continue to be Russia's main buyer and partner. According to Viktor Kladov, in 2017 it is planned to sign a multi-billion dollar contract with India for the construction of four Project 11356 frigates using the “2+2” formula (two frigates will be supplied by Russia, and two more will be built in India under license). “This contract depends on how quickly the ongoing negotiations are completed. In particular, a whole series of fairly serious meetings with Indian partners have already taken place; if the negotiations go well, the contract will be signed in 2017,” Kladov noted. It is noted that the Indian side is currently busy selecting a suitable shipyard for licensed production of some of the frigates. In addition, the director for international cooperation and regional policy of Rostec spoke about the planned contract for the production of 200 light multi-purpose Ka-226T helicopters in India. Also in 2017, it is planned to sign a large contract for the supply of 48 Mi-17V-5 multi-purpose helicopters to India.

If we talk about other countries, a very large contract is planned to be concluded with Indonesia. We are talking about the supply of Su-35 multirole fighters to this country. The contract for the supply of fighter jets should be the first in a series of planned agreements with Indonesia on the supply of military products. According to Kladov, based on the available financial resources, the Indonesian side gives priority to the purchase of Su-35 fighters from Russia, followed by contracts for naval equipment, and then for helicopters. He also added that Indonesia is showing increased interest in the unique Russian Be-200 amphibious aircraft. The country is ready to purchase 2-3 such aircraft. At the same time, Indonesia is currently the closest state to purchasing the Be-200 due to the constant need to fight forest fires.

A recent study by the International Peace Research Institute showed that Russia and the United States are still the world's largest arms exporters, and the region that consumes approximately half of all arms exports is still the Middle East.

Some countries that artificially create “conditions for wars and conflicts” in a number of regions are pursuing the goal of selling weapons to such regions. Some are only trying to benefit from the situation of permanent wars created by someone else, and also pursuing the same goals, they resort to commerce. And in fact, large arms manufacturers, lobbying their interests in the government and political circles of a particular country, themselves play a significant role in creating the conditions that will be favorable for increasing the volume of arms sales to regions affected by constant wars and conflicts.

Context

China seeks to increase arms exports

The Epoch Times 03/27/2016

Russia is conquering the Iranian market

JB Press 03/02/2016

Moscow's arms export policy

Finanz and Wirtschaft 03.11.2015

Boom in Russian arms exports

Il Sole 24 Ore 10/29/2010
One of the mechanisms resorted to by the forces lobbying for the production of weapons, at least in the Western Asian region, is “Iranophobia”, when, by “playing” on it, similar fears are artificially spread among the Arab monarchies of the Persian Gulf, and, thus, From the treasury of all these small but very rich states, billions of dollars are transferred abroad, which are then spent by these dwarf states on the purchase of weapons. However, as always, the United States plays its “special” role in these processes, which, according to the latest statistical data, is one of the largest “sellers” and exporters of weapons.

According to reports from the TASNIM news agency, which, in turn, refers to data from the Sputnik agency, the Institute of Peace reported yesterday that over the past 5 years, Russia and the United States have firmly held their positions as leaders in global arms exports, and 56% of global exports belonged to exactly to them. According to the same reports, America has been the world leader in this field for the past 5 years and controlled one third of the global arms market. The volume of arms exports from the United States during this period increased by more than 21% compared to the period 2007-2011. And approximately half of all American arms exports go to the Middle East.

The aforementioned report, prepared by the Institute of Peace, also states: “The United States proposes to supply all major types of weapons to approximately 100 countries around the world. The lion's share of total US arms exports consists of combat fighter aircraft equipped with cruise missiles and other guided munitions, as well as the latest generation of missile defense systems.” Russia, in turn, is in second place in this list of exporters - the leaders in arms exports, and the share of this country in the world arms market has already reached 23%. India, Vietnam, China and Algeria are the countries that are the main buyers of Russian weapons. It is these 4 countries that make up more than 70% of the total volume of Russian arms exports.

Also, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), India, the UAE and Saudi Arabia top the list of countries in the world that import weapons and military equipment. During the period from 2012 to 2016. India accounted for 13% of the total global arms imports. And after it, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, China and Algeria occupy their positions in this list.

InoSMI materials contain assessments exclusively of foreign media and do not reflect the position of the InoSMI editorial staff.

MOSCOW, December 28 - RIA Novosti. The volume of global exports of arms and military equipment (W&M) in 2015 will be about $92.8 billion - the arms trade has not taken such a large scale since the end of the Cold War, a representative of the Center for Analysis of the Global Arms Trade told RIA Novosti on Monday.

RIA Novosti's choice: the main events of 2015 in the military sphereThe main event of the year was the Russian operation against international terrorists in Syria. In addition, in 2015, the number of surprise inspections in the Russian army increased significantly.

Another noticeable trend of the outgoing year is a significant increase in shadow, illegal arms supplies due to the growing activity of the Islamic State (Daesh). It is not possible to calculate their exact volume for obvious reasons.

TsAMTO conducts all calculations in “current” US dollars, that is, at the dollar exchange rate at the time of concluding a particular contract in the prices of the corresponding year. The calculations take into account only legal supplies of weapons and military equipment.

“In 2015, the volume of global exports and imports of conventional weapons (according to the UN Register classification) will amount, according to TsAMTO, to at least $92.8 billion. This is the highest result since the end of the Cold War era,” the agency’s interlocutor said.

In recent years, global arms exports have been growing rapidly. Thus, in 2012 its volume amounted to 57 billion dollars, in 2014 - almost 74.4 billion. According to the analyst, such a high increase is associated with the start of supplies under a number of “mega-contracts” between the United States and Middle Eastern countries, primarily with Saudi Arabia.

Main arms suppliers

The top three arms exporting countries are the USA, Russia and France. The predicted leader in the military and military equipment market, America sold military equipment abroad worth $41.548 billion in 2015, accounting for 44.77% of global defense exports.

By a wide margin, Russia took the “silver” of the outgoing year with a volume of arms exports of $13.944 billion (15% of global supplies). Unlike the United States, the indicators of Russian arms and military equipment exports have changed slightly over the past three years - this figure has been stable at about 13 billion US dollars per year.

France closes the top three, according to TsAMTO estimates - the volume of arms and military equipment exports of the “fifth republic” amounted to $7.874 billion, or 8.5% of global supplies. Compared to 2012, Paris almost doubled this figure.

Increase in illegal exports

In addition to the growth of legal supplies of military equipment, 2015 was marked by an unprecedented increase in shadow exports due to the activity of the Islamic State terrorist group in Syria and Iraq.

“Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, without resorting to complex schemes to conceal the facts of arms transfers, directly supply weapons to militants in Syria. In this regard, the SAR has become the largest market in the segment of the illegal arms trade,” said a TsAMTO representative.

The Financial Times has learned about the mechanism for supplying ammunition to the Islamic State (Daesh)Terrorists, who actively use machine guns and machine guns in between bomb attacks, purchase millions of dollars worth of ammunition every month. It doesn't matter to them who the arms dealers buy their goods from - Iraq, Syria, the rebels or even Israel.

This same group of countries that can be described as “black holes” in the illegal arms trade includes Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, Mali, Sudan and Nigeria.

If previously the illegal segment of the TsAMTO arms market was estimated at approximately 2-3 billion dollars annually, then in 2015, according to a number of indirect estimates, it could exceed 5 billion, that is, more than 5% of the legal market. Thus, the total volume of legal and shadow exports in 2015 may exceed $100 billion.

In addition, some large supplies are financed by the United States through the purchase of used weapons in Eastern Europe and other regions and further re-export to the so-called “moderate opposition” in Syria. Along with this, the United States, using re-export schemes, and often directly, supplies the “moderate opposition” with American weapons. December 2, 2015, 04:07

Assad spoke about the role of Turkey and other countries in supporting terroristsThe President of Syria noted that only Russia’s actions in the fight against Daesh (Islamic State) in Syria forced the terrorists to retreat and influenced the turning point in the situation in the country.

“The secrecy in this matter is understandable, since we are talking about the supply of weapons to a country whose armed forces are conducting large-scale military operations against the Islamic State with the support of the Russian Aerospace Forces, but this and a number of other examples of the secrecy of information on legal supplies of weapons and military equipment to the countries of this region (in particular, Iraq) reduce the level of reliability of the assessment of the global arms trade market as a whole,” the agency’s interlocutor noted.

According to TsAMTO, the decrease in the transparency of data on legal supplies of weapons and military equipment to the Middle East at the end of the year reduced the level of reliability of the overall assessment of the global weapons and military equipment market by 3-4%.

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