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The AK-47 has been produced in greater numbers than any other assault rifle and has been used in conflicts all over the world.

The arms industry is a massive global industry. Its products include guns, ammunition, missiles, military aircraft, and their associated consumables and systems. The arms trade is the exchange of arms or weapons among two or more parties, generally but not exclusively sovereign nations. Image File history File links Circle-contradict. ... Image File history File links Broom_icon. ... Image File history File links Rifle_AK47_Olive_Drab. ... Image File history File links Rifle_AK47_Olive_Drab. ... Avtomat Kalashnikova model 1947 g. ... The AK-47 is the worlds most common assault rifle. ... A gun is a common name given to a device that fires high-velocity projectiles. ... Boxes of ammunition clog a warehouse in Baghdad Ammunition is a generic military term meaning (the assembly of) a projectile and its propellant. ... Exocet missile in flight A missile (see also pronunciation differences) is a projectile propelled as a weapon at a target. ... Military aircraft are airplanes used in warfare. ... The bayonet is used as both knife and spear. ... One of the most influential doctrines in history is that all humans are divided into groups called nations. ...

Global impact

In the Cold War Era, arms exports were used by both the Soviet Union and the United States to influence their standings in other countries, particularly Third-World nations (conflicts commonly referred to as "proxy" wars). Since the fall of the Soviet Union, the global arms trade has grown exponentially, a result of the massive buildup that contributed to the bankrupting of that nation. Years of governmental instability and a lack of oversight had a predictable effect, with a sudden boom in black market weapon sales that sent ripples throughout the globe.

It is estimated that yearly, over 900 billion dollars are spent on arms.[1] Almost every industrialized country in the world has a domestic arms industry to supply its own military forces. Some countries also have a substantial legal or illegal domestic trade in weapons for use by its citizens. The illegal trade in small arms is prevalent in many countries and regions affected by political instability. Frequently, there are links between the legal arms trade and the illegal arms trade, with legally purchased weaponry being re-sold for illegal purposes. Some researchers point out that a lack of transparency in the arms industry allows for these illicit transactions. // A military or military force (n. ... Small arms captured in Fallujah, Iraq by the US Marine Corps in 2004 The term small arms generally describes any number of smaller infantry weapons, such as firearms that an individual soldier can carry. ...

Contracts to supply a given country's military are awarded by the government, making arms contracts of substantial political importance. The link between politics and the arms trade can result in the development of what US President Eisenhower described as a military-industrial complex, where the armed forces, commerce, and politics become closely linked. Various corporations, some publicly held, others private, bid furiously for these contracts, which are often worth many billion dollars over its course. Sometimes, such as the contract for the new Joint Strike Fighter, the decision is made on the merits of the design submitted by the companies involved. Other times, no bidding or competition takes place- a subject of controversy in recent global conflicts. Dwight David Ike Eisenhower (October 14, 1890–March 28, 1969), American soldier and politician, was the 34th President of the United States (1953–1961) and supreme commander of the Allied forces in Europe during World War II, with the rank of General of the Army. ... President Dwight Eisenhower famously referred to the military-industrial complex in his farewell speech. ...

The Control Arms Campaign, founded by Amnesty International, Oxfam, and the International Action Network on Small Arms, estimates that there are over 600 million items of small arms in circulation, and that over 1135 companies based in more than 98 different countries manufacture small arms as well as their various components and ammunition. According to Oxfam, an estimated 500,000 individuals die in small arms-conflicts every year, approximately one death per minute.[2] Amnesty International (commonly known as Amnesty or AI) is a non-governmental organization (NGO) comprising a worldwide movement of people who campaign for internationally recognized human rights.[1] Founded in the UK in 1961, AI compares actual practices of human rights with internationally accepted standards and demands compliance where these... Oxfam International is a confederation of 13 independent, non-profit, secular, community-based aid and development organizations who work with local partners in over 100 countries worldwide to reduce poverty, suffering, and injustice. ... The International Action Network on Small Arms (IANSA) is an international non-governmental organisation recognized by the United Nations. ...

For many people, arms exports may pose an ethical challenge, as they may see supplying the weapons for a conflict as morally akin to becoming involved with negligible personal, national or corporate risk. Essentially, they view the arms industry as a means of profiting from war and death when failure to supply arms could lead to an early disengagement. On the other hand, exporting arms to groups (or nations) with "laudable" goals- a rebel group overthrowing a fascist regime, say- can be an invaluable equalizer in the conflict. And there is no shortage of parties to a conflict- the Hutus during the Rwandan genocide, for example- that had little trouble making use of such archaic, inexpensive technology as the machete, to attack and terrorize the Tutsi community. Of course- and this is endemic of nearly every debate over arms trade- the terminology used and the people it refers to can be frustratingly fluid. As years pass, governments decide on new "interests" and circumstances change accordingly. "Freedom fighters" become "insurgents". "Terrorists" become "invaluable allies", and "religious zealots" morph into "agents of stability". Entire nations, to use the parlance of the early 21st century, can go from the "Coalition of the Willing" to the "Axis of Evil" in very little time, and every change affects policy and the distribution of arms in the world.

World arms exports

Source: Arms Export Trends, [3] Source: Arms Production Trends 2004, [4] World map showing North America A satellite composite image of North America. ... A common understanding of Western Europe in modern times. ... Regions of Europe as delineated by the United Nations (UN definition of Eastern Europe marked salmon):  Northern Europe  Western Europe  Eastern Europe  Southern Europe Pre-1989 division between the West (grey) and Eastern Bloc (orange) superimposed on current national boundaries: Russia (dark orange), other countries of the former USSR (medium... This article is 150 kilobytes or more in size. ...

United States arms trade

The United States is by far the largest exporter of weapons in the world, with a sales volume that exceeds the next 14 countries combined. Military sales equate to about 18 percent of the Federal budget, far and away the greatest proportion of any nation. (Estimated budget authority as presented in the President's budget.) John Ralston Saul states that the American government cannot reduce arms sales because of the consequent fall in GDP. (See John Ralston Saul's The Collapse of Globalism, 2005) The introduction to this article is too long. ...

U.S. arms are sold either as Foreign military sales (FMS), in which The Pentagon is an intermediate negotiator, or as Direct Commercial Sales (DCS), where a company directly negotiates with its buyer. Many sales require a license from the State Department. The Defense Department manages the Excess Defense Articles (EDA), weapons from the US military given away or sold at bargain prices, emergency drawdowns, assistance provided at the discretion of the President, and International Military Education and Training (IMET). A program for government-to-government purchases of weapons and other defense articles, defense services, and military training. ... The Pentagon is the headquarters of the United States Department of Defense, located at 48 N. Rotary Road, Arlington, Virginia 22211 (Map). ... The United States Department of State, often referred to as the State Department, is the Cabinet-level foreign affairs agency of the United States Government, equivalent to foreign ministries in other countries. ... The United States Department of Defense (DOD or DoD) is the federal department charged with coordinating and supervising all agencies and functions of the government relating directly to national security and the military. ... The presidential seal was first used by President Hayes in 1880 and last modified in 1959 by adding the 50th star for Hawaii. ... This article needs cleanup. ...

From 1989 to 1996, the global value of direct commercial arms sales was US$257 billion, of which 45% was exported from the US. According to the 2005 annual US congress reports, 58% of all US arms trade contracts are made with developing countries. The most recent World Policy Report, an annual update issued by the Arms Trade Research Center, a more detailed breakdown of US military spending is offered. It is here touched on from the following passages from the executive summary, expounded upon later in the report. Type Bicameralism Houses Senate House of Representatives United States Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D, since January 4, 2007 Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D, since January 4, 2007 Members 535 plus 4 Delegates and 1 Resident Commissioner Political groups (as of November 7, 2006 elections) Democratic Party Republican...  High human development Medium human development Low human development Unavailable A developing country has a relatively low standard of living, an undeveloped industrial base, and a moderate to low Human Development Index (HDI) score. ...

"In 2003, the last year for which full information is available, the United States transferred weaponry to 18 of the 25 countries involved in active conflicts. From Angola, Chad and Ethiopia, to Colombia, Pakistan and the Philippines, transfers through the two largest U.S. arms sales programs (Foreign Military Sales and Commercial Sales) to these conflict nations totaled nearly $1 billion in 2003, with the vast bulk of the dollar volume going to Israel ($845.6 million).

In 2003, more than half of the top 25 recipients of U.S. arms transfers in the developing world (13 of 25) were defined as undemocratic by the U.S. State Department’s Human Rights Report: in the sense that "citizens do not have the right to change their own government" or that right was seriously abridged. These 13 nations received over $2.7 billion in U.S. arms transfers under the Foreign Military Sales and Commercial Sales programs in 2003, with the top recipients including Saudi Arabia ($1.1 billion), Egypt ($1.0 billion), Kuwait ($153 million), the United Arab Emirates ($110 million) and Uzbekistan ($33 million)."

International military education and training

In fiscal year 2002, $70 million USD was spent on International Military Education and Training IMET for 113 countries. During this same year, $46 million worth of drawdowns were provided to Nigeria ($4 million), Afghanistan ($2 million), Georgia ($25 million), the Philippines ($10 million) and Tunisia ($5 million). This article needs cleanup. ...

Defense contractors are weapon manufacturers or companies participating in weapon research and warfare simulation. List of United States defense contractors. ...

See also private military contractor. A private military contractor (PMC) is a corporation that provides armed forces trained in combat, private military, for other corporations, organizations, individuals and state military forces. ...

List of major weapon manufacturers

For a complete list, see: List of modern armament manufacturers

The following list of modern armament manufacturers presents major companies producing modern weapons and munitions. ... Glock is an Austrian defense contractor (named after the founder Gaston Glock) founded in 1963 in Deutsch-Wagram, near Vienna, Austria. ... The Austrian firm Steyr-Mannlicher is a firearms manufacturer based in the city of Steyr. ... Australian Defence Industries (ADI) is the primary defence contractor for the Australian Defence Force. ... The ASC, fomerly Australian Submarine Corporation, is a wholly government-owned Australian naval defence company headquartered at Osborne in Adelaide, South Australia. ... Fabrique Nationale de Herstal, more often known as Fabrique Nationale and abbreviated simply as FN or FN Herstal originated in the Belgian city of Herstal, near Liège. ... Colt Canada is a firearms manufacturer located in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada. ... The China North Industries Corporation (Chinese: ; pinyin: ; literally North Industries), official English name Norinco, manufactures vehicles (trucks, cars and motorcycles), machinery, optical-electronic products, oil field equipment, chemicals, light industrial products, explosives and blast materials, civil and military firearms and ammunition, etc. ... The European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company EADS N.V. (EADS) is a large European aerospace corporation, formed by the merger on July 10, 2000 of Aérospatiale-Matra of France, Construcciones Aeronáuticas SA (CASA) of Spain, and DaimlerChrysler Aerospace AG (DASA) of Germany. ... Dassault Aviation is a French aircraft manufacturer of military, regional and business jets. ... Direction des Constructions Navales (DCN) is based in France and is one of Europes leading shipbuilders. ... The Thales Group (Euronext: HO) is a global electronics company serving aerospace, defence, and information technology markets worldwide. ... GIAT Industries (formerly known as Groupement des Industries de lArmée de Terre, Armys Industries Group) is a French government-owned weapon manufacturer. ... The European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company EADS N.V. (EADS) is a large European aerospace corporation, formed by the merger on July 10, 2000 of Aérospatiale-Matra of France, Construcciones Aeronáuticas SA (CASA) of Spain, and DaimlerChrysler Aerospace AG (DASA) of Germany. ... Heckler & Koch G41 Heckler & Koch GmbH (H&K) (pronounced //) is a German weapons manufacturing company famous for various series of small firearms, notably the MP5 submachine gun, the MP7 personal defense weapon, USP series handguns, high-precision PSG1 sniper rifle, and the G3 and G36 assault rifles. ... Krauss-Maffei is an injection molding machine manufacturer based in Germany. ... Rheinmetall is a German defense company with factories in Düsseldorf and Unterlüß. It has a long tradition of making guns and artillery pieces. ... The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) is Indias premier research organisation for defence related matters. ... Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) is a major aerospace company under the Ministry of Defence headquartered in Bangalore, India. ... Israel Aircraft Industries or IAI is Israels prime aerospace and aviation manufacturer, producing aerial systems for both military and civilian usage. ... IMI logo Israel Military Industries Ltd. ... Raphael (also spelled as Rafael or Rephael, and in Hebrew: רפאל - רשות לפיתוח אמצעי לחימה ) is the Israeli authority for development of weapons and military technology. ... Elbit Systems Ltd. ... Logo of Pietro Beretta This article is about a firearm manufacturer; for the car, see Chevrolet Beretta. ... Finmeccanica is Italys second largest industrial group. ... Fincantieri is an Italian shipbuilder. ... Avio S.p. ... Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace (KDA), one of two operating companies of Kongsberg Gruppen (KOG), is a supplier of defence and space related systems and products, mainly anti-ship missiles, military communications, and command and weapons control systems for naval vessels and air-defence applications. ... Raufoss is the municipal centre of Vestre Toten, a municipality in the county of Oppland, Norway. ... IZH (ИЖ) is a weapons manufacturer in Izhevsk, Russia that makes the well known AK-47 Kalashnikov but also have a civilian production of automobiles and motorcycles. ... Sukhoi (Сухой) is a major Russian military fighter aircraft manufacturer. ... MIG may refer to one of the following. ... Category: Possible copyright violations ... Evolution of the land systems division of BAE Systems, 1970s to Land & Armaments formation BAE Systems Bofors is a Swedish subsidiary of BAE Systems Land and Armaments. ... Kockums in Malmö, 1970 Foto: PÃ¥l-Nils Nilsson. ... For other uses, see Saab (disambiguation). ... BAE Systems plc is the worlds fourth largest defence contractor,[3] the largest in Europe and a commercial aerospace manufacturer. ... Cobham plc is a British manufacturing company based in Wimborne. ... Rolls-Royce plc is a British aircraft engine maker; the second-largest in the world, behind General Electric Aviation. ... AAI Corporation (Aircraft Armaments Incorporated) is an aerospace and defense manufacturing firm in Hunt Valley, Maryland. ... BAE Systems Inc. ... The Boeing Company (NYSE: BA, TYO: 7661 ) is an aerospace and defense corporation headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. ... The Carlyle Group is a Washington, D.C. based global private equity investment firm with more than $54. ... Colts Manufacturing Company (CMC) is a United States firearms manufacturer founded in 1847. ... General Atomics is a nuclear physics and defense contractor in southern California. ... GE redirects here. ... General Electric Aircraft Engines (GEAE) is the top supplier of aircraft engines in the world and offers engines for the majority of commercial aircraft. ... General Dynamics (NYSE: GD) is a defense conglomerate formed by mergers and divestitures, and as of 2005 it is the sixth largest defense contractor in the world[1]. The company has changed markedly in the post-Cold War era of defense consolidation. ... Honeywell Heating Specialties Company Stock Certificate dated 1924 signed by Mark C. Honeywell - courtesy of Scripophily. ... Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) is a leading aerospace manufacturer and advanced technology company formed in 1995 by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta. ... The Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) is an aerospace and defense conglomerate that is the result of a 1994 merger between Northrop and Grumman. ... Raytheon Company (NYSE: RTN) is a major United States military contractor based in Waltham, Massachusetts. ... United Defense Industries was a United States defense contractor which is now part of BAE Systems Land and Armaments. ... BAE Systems Land and Armaments was created on June 24, 2005, following the completition of BAE Systems acquisition of United Defense. ...

Institutes participating in weapon research and warfare simulation

• Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research [5]
• Bolt, Beranek and Newman
• QinetiQ
• World Security Institute

TNO building in Delft Nederlandse Organisatie voor Toegepast Natuurwetenschappelijk Onderzoek or TNO (Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research) is a not-for-profit organisation in The Netherlands that focuses on applied science. ... BBN Technologies (originally Bolt Beranek and Newman) is a high technology company that provides research and development services. ... QinetiQ (LSE: QQ.) (pronounced kĭ-nĕtĭk, as in kinetic energy) is a British defence technology company, formed from the greater part of the former government agency DERA when it was split up in June 2001 (with the smaller part becoming Dstl). ...

See also

• Al Yamamah arms deal (Britain - Saudi Arabia)
• Small arms
• Small arms proliferation issues
• European Union arms embargo on China
• Landmine
• List of National Defense Industries
• Canadian Arms trade
• Lord of War

RSAF Tornado IDS Al Yamamah (The Dove) is the name of a series of massive arms sales by the United Kingdom to Saudi Arabia, which have been paid for by the delivery of up to 600,000 barrels of oil per day to the UK government. ... Small arms captured in Fallujah, Iraq by the US Marine Corps in 2004 The term small arms generally describes any number of smaller infantry weapons, such as firearms that an individual soldier can carry. ... The international movement to limit the availability of small arms in conflict zones Various international organizations (including Oxfam GB, Amnesty International and the United Nations) and domestic groups (eg the Small Arms Working Group in the US) have committed themselves to limiting the trade in, and proliferation of small arms... The European Union arms embargo on China is an embargo which was imposed by the European Union (EU) member states on the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) in response to its suppression of the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989. ... Minefield redirects here. ... The following is a list of nations and organizations that currently produce modern weapons around the world. ... Canadian Arms Sales are governed by the countrys Export and Imports Permits Act. ... Lord of War is a 2005 film written and directed by Andrew Niccol and starring Nicolas Cage. ...

External links

• World Security Institute's Center for Defense Information
• Campaign Against Arms Trade (UK)
• SIPRI arms industry reports and database
• SIPRI list of Top 100 arms-producing companies
• The Guardian's arms trade report
• List of participators of the Defence System and Equipment international conference in London, 2003
• FAS's Arms Sales Monitoring Project
• UN Department for Disarmament Affairs
• ControlArms.org
• Amnesty International: Arms Trade Treaty
• The British Library - finding information on the defence industry
• Weapons Review - Information About Weapons and Defence Industry and Technology *new