U.S. Fuels Middle East Arms Race

In 2008, the Arab region was a paradox in terms of arms sales. The economic crisis depressed, to a large extent, the sale of arms in most of the world; however, the Arab region maintained growth. This is true for the region as a whole, not just for oil-producing countries with the assets to ride out the economic crisis. For example, Morocco recorded the third largest amount of arms transactions globally.

America is way ahead of other countries, according to data from the Congressional Research Service (CRS) issued last September. CRS is an independent research foundation funded by the American government that serves as an authoritative source in critiquing the administration’s policies and programs. This information presents us with the opportunity to examine the other side, one that is infrequently discussed and illustrates a change in U.S. policy in the Arab region. The new policy is two-fold: on one end, it focuses on conflict planning and containment without foreseeable resolution, and on the other hand, it boosts conflict strategies by choosing a side. This serves as the base that is feeding this fervent arms race in the entire region.

Examining the data provides interesting indications to recent changes in arms transactions. The value of arms deals for developing countries reached $42.2 billion in 2008, compared with $41.1 billion in 2007. These deals accounted for 76.4 percent of total arms deals in the world in 2008. The United States and Russia dominated arms sales in the developing world from 2005-2008. Russia’s arms deals totaled $35.1 billion, or a 22.9 percent of the total, whereas America’s transactions reached $56.3 billion, or 36.7 percent of the total for the same period.

It is interesting that 2008 was a notable exception. The United States sold $29.6 billion, or 70.1 percent of their total deals, worth of arms to the Arab region. The remainder of their deals reached $37.8 billion, 68.4 percent of total transactions. The Arab market made up the principal region for U.S. arms deals with a lion’s share of total global deals. The UAE signed deals worth $9.7 billion, and Saudi Arabia $8.7 billion, Morocco $5.4 billion, Iraq $2 billion, and Egypt with $1.4 billion.

A close examination of the nature of such deals clearly reveals American domination. During 2008 there were many noteworthy deals: The UAE bought patriot air defense missiles valued at $6.5 billion, 24 F-16C/D aircrafts for $2.1 billion, 140 advanced Abrams tanks deal valued at $683 million and 6 C-130J Cargo planes for $534 million; the U.S. made 3 major deals with Saudi Arabia regarding advanced jet engines for $479 million, 24 Black Hawk helicopters for $342 million and support for advanced tanks for $290 million; Egypt spent $261 million for missiles and technological support.

Russia’s deals with the Arab region were approximately $3.3 billion, or 7.8 percent of total transactions. One must take into account that the MiG fighter jet scandal with Algeria, in which an Algerian officer discovered Russian lies, leading to the return of the planes and the sending of replacements, affected Russia’s credibility in the market. France came in third with $2.5 billion. The loss of France’s aircraft deal with Morocco furthered its decline, when the U.S. succeeded in offering a tempting deal for the F16 planes.

Whenever the case of the Maghreb Moroccan Sahara is raised, so is its role in fueling the arms race. This is a concerning matter, but alternatively, it highlights the tension underlying the Spanish-Moroccan relationship associated with the continued Spanish occupation of Ceuta, Melilla and the Canary Islands. In particular, the Spanish position following the Torre Island crisis in 2002 provided an example of Spain’s tendency to settle differences with Morocco in a military fashion. What is noteworthy is the United States’ intervention to prevent it from turning into a military confrontation, but without solving the problem of sovereignty on the island, which kept it an unsettled problem driving the arms market.