[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 124 (Thursday, August 25, 1994)]
[House]
[Page H]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: August 25, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                ``LOOK WHO'S DOMINATING THE ARMS TRADE''

 Mr. SIMON. Mr. President, the U.S. role in arms sales has 
always been a troubling one.
  And Members of the Senate, the House, and the administration should 
be troubled by the latest statistics.
  I ask to insert a thoughtful New York Times editorial on the subject 
into the Record at this point.
  The editorial follows:

                [From the New York Times, Aug. 20, 1994]

                  Look Who's Dominating the Arms Trade

       The Clinton Administration has yet to announce a policy on 
     arms sales. Under this Administration the U.S. is dominating 
     the market for arms as no other country has in recent 
     history. The American share of new arms deals in the third 
     world soared to 73 percent in 1993 from 56 percent in 1992.
       Given the dramatic rise, the failure to develop a policy is 
     truly a missed opportunity. The U.S. could use its market 
     dominance to try to get other leading producer countries to 
     agree to restrain the arms trade. It could offer to limit its 
     own sales in return for similar restraint from other 
     countries, starting with the sale of the most advanced 
     weapons to the world's most volatile region--the Middle East.
       Instead, the two largest sales for 1993--80 percent of the 
     total--went to that region. Saudi Arabia bought 72 F-15 jet 
     fighters from McDonnell Douglas for $9.5 billion and Kuwait 
     bought 256 M1-A2 tanks from General Dynamics for $2.2 
     billion.
       With slowed Pentagon procurement, the defense industry 
     cannot expect to fend off decline by pushing its products 
     abroad. U.S. sales to the third world increased just slightly 
     in 1993--to $14.8 billion from $14.6 billion the previous 
     year. That is because the global arms market is shrinking. 
     Third-world arms purchases totaled $20.4 billion in 1993, 
     down 22 percent from 1992 and well below the 1988 peak of 
     $61.5 billion.
       As a result, the U.S. arms industry is certain to face 
     further consolidation and shrinkage. That could reduce the 
     little competition left in defense contracting and shut down 
     critical parts of the supply pipeline. The Pentagon needs to 
     study whether it should take a more active role in managing 
     that shrinkage.
       It might conclude that it is best left to the dictates of 
     the market. But as with overall sales trends, having no 
     policy seems to be Administration policy. And that is not 
     necessarily the best policy.

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