translated from Spanish: 5 countries that export 75% of the world’s weapons (and what are those who buy them more)

Only five powers control three-fourths of the sales of weapons in the world market.
According to the last quinquennial report of the International Research Institute for the peace of Stockholm (Sipri, for its acronym in English), they are United States, Russia, France, Germany and China.
Altogether, according to the report published Monday, they properly represent 75% of the exports of weapons.
But in the period 2014-2018, not only Washington remained above the rest, but left well further to its nearest competitor: Moscow: If in the period from 2009 to 2013 U.S. surpassed Russia in only 12% now the difference between the two countries is almost an abyss : 75%.
“United States has been for decades the leading exporter of weapons in the world. But now it is striking how the difference in production with other countries is becoming more notable,”you told BBC World Aude Fleurant, Director of the program of military expenditures and weapons of Sipri.
According to the report, Washington overcame 36 percent to the rest of the countries as a leading exporter of armaments globally, while the production of France represented 6.8% of the total, Germany contributed 6.4% and China with 5.2%.
The great fall, says Fleurant, was the Russian market, which experienced a decrease of 17% over the period 2009-2013.
Why the fall in the sale of weapons of Russia?
The expert says that an element has been instrumental in the decline of Russia: cancellations in purchases from India and Venezuela, two of its main clients.
And it is that if India has directed look to other markets, in the case of Caracas, ally of Moscow, the impact of the economic crisis has led to a fall in its purchase of armaments “notable”.
According to the report, the purchase of weapons in the Latin American country, which was the largest importer in South America between 2009 and 2013, decreased by 83% due to the crisis.
“Venezuela was for years a very important customer of Russia, one of the few buyers of its weapons in Latin America. Now, with the economic crisis there, the hyperinflation and the political situation, many contracts have been delayed or canceled, and this has influenced negatively in Russian arms exports”, he believes.
The Tupolev-160 is a heavy bomber of Soviet design. Russia is the second largest trading partner and biggest creditor of Venezuela, after China, and between 2005 and 2013, Caracas and Moscow Governments signed more than 30 defense contracts worth more than US$ 11,000 million.
Last December, arrived in Venezuela two Tupolev 160 or ‘White Swan’, a model of bomber heavy supersonic Soviet design and a group of pilots in training.
Where to buy Venezuela weapons and what will be the real impact of the embargo imposed by the European Union the bombers Russians who came to Venezuela and expectations of them the Government of Nicolas Maduro, Fleurant indicates that you despite this and some donations of arms shopping levels have fallen sharply and have negatively impacted the Russian arms market.
Why is US the main market for weapons?
For decades, United States has conquered the sale of weapons around the world, although contradictorily, the price of their products is often the high.
According to Fleurant, its success is because Washington has designed a complex strategy of sale of weapons that includes training, guarantees of security, training, high-tech and support in case of conflicts.
Hence, many countries prefer to buy these arms to be tested in other markets, such as Chinese or Russian, where could find themselves at a lower cost.
“Though more expensive, are American weapons, come with a number of safeguards that make them more attractive for many importers,” he says.
The specialist believes that there are also other geopolitical issues: countries that integrated regional blocs, such as NATO, prefer to trust their weaponry and technology to an allied country and not a potential enemy, as Moscow.
“Also is the fact that it is strategic in these regional alliances have a technology that is common for all countries,” adds.
The F-35 fighter were that higher income reported to States Unidos.Durante the Government of Barack Obama, Nobel Peace Prize, the White House deployed a wide maneuver to promote the signing of agreements of weapons, that according to the think tank Center for International Policy, was the largest in history after World War II.
Since his arrival to the Presidency, Donald Trump has consolidated this policy.
Last year, in an interview with CNN, Republican Senator Marco Rubio saw that behind this strategy in arms sales United States also saw a possibility of influence on potential conflicts.
“Arms sales are important, not only for the money, but also provided an influence on their future behavior.” They will need our spare parts, our training… and those are things that we can use to influence their behavior,”said.
What kind of weapons were the best-selling?
Fleurant said that there are various complex weapons that have dominated the international market in the last five years, including: F-35 warplanes of fifth generation missile missile systems helicopter hunting them where most were exported from? weapons?
According to the report, several countries in Asia and Oceania (including Australia, China, India, Korea’s South and Viet Nam as a main regional buyers) received 40% of total world imports of weapons between 2014 and 2018.
Meanwhile, Middle East countries accounted for 35% of the global total in that period.
Saudi Arabia was placed as the leader of the purchase of weapons worldwide, 12% of the total versus 4.3% from the previous five-year period and United States was its main market.
This fact has been put in question after the murder of the journalist Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul and also by the complaints of alleged war crimes committed by the Arab country in the conflict in Yemen’s aviation.
Trump, who chose Saudi lands as their first destination for a foreign visit as head of State, dismissed sanctions after the death of Khashoggi for considering that that decision could imply that Riad opens to the arms of Russia or China market.
Trump defended the sale of arms to Saudi Arabia following the murder of the journalist Jamal Khashoggi.Fleurant explained in the Gulf countries also have most popular weapons of the United States and other European Nations, while the Russian and Chinese markets not they enjoy equal popularity.
India was the second largest importer and other two African Nations occupied the fourth and fifth place: Egypt and Algeria.
Only this last country, qcontabilizo 56% of African imports of weapons in the period.
What happens in Latin America?
According to the report, imports of weapons in Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean increased by 49% between 2014 and 2018 with regard to the previous five-year period, while in South America was reduced by 51%.
Purchases of weapons in Mexico accounted for 72% of imports with respect to their Central American neighbors.
What are the 10 countries of the world, who spend a larger share of their wealth in arms how United States is flooding arms Middle East, a region mired in conflicts but was not there: arms purchases grew by 40% over the 2009-2013 period.
While Brazil represented 27% of the South American shopping, although they decreased by 28% compared with the previous five years.

Original source in Spanish