Arms and the State: Patterns of Military Production and Trade (Cambridge Studies in International Relations, Series Number 22)

This book analyzes the underlying structure and dynamic forces that have shaped the international trade in arms from the development of military technologies in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries to the twentieth-century revolutions in weaponry. The author discusses the political, economic and military motivations that drive states to produce and export arms, and examines the different ways in which states respond to these motivations. By focusing on the processes of technological innovation and diffusion he is able to sketch an evolutionary picture of the diffusion of new military technology, and place the current arms trade in historical perspective. This book analyses the structure and motive forces that shape the global arms transfer and production system. The author distinguishes three tiers of arms producers, defined by such factors as defence production base, military research and development capabilities, and dependence upon arms exports. These factors interact with underlying political, economic, and military motivations to drive states to produce and export arms, and provide the force which directs the international trade in arms. The author discusses the United States and the Soviet Union, the European arms suppliers, and the emerging arms producers of the developing world. Although it concentrates on the contemporary period, the book covers a wide historical span, from the development of military technologies in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries to twentieth-century revolutions in weaponry. By focusing on the processes of technological innovation and diffusion, the author shows the evolutionary nature of the spread of military technologies, and situates the current arms transfer system in a broad historical context To understand the evolutionary dynamic of the global arms transfer and production system, one must first untangle the forces that generate the demand for the production and trade in weapons and second, explain the way in which this demand may change over time. Keith Krause. Includes Bibliographical References And Index.