Conventional Arms Transfer Policy: Agency Processes for Reviewing Direct Commercial Sales and Foreign Military Sales Align with Policy Criteria
Abstract
From 2014 through 2018, the U.S. government authorized hundreds of billions of dollars in arms transfers to foreign entities, including foreign governments, with more than $180 billion in fiscal year 2018 alone. The United States uses two key arms transfer programs to support foreign policy and national security goals: (1) Direct Commercial Sales (DCS), for which a U.S. corporation and a foreign buyer negotiate the sale of arms, and (2) Foreign Military Sales (FMS), for which the U.S. government and a foreign government negotiate an agreement for the purchase of arms. The Department of State (State) is responsible for authorizing both DCS and FMS transfers. State oversees the licensing process for direct commercial sales, while the Department of Defense (DOD) implements foreign military sales. Both DCS and FMS transfers undergo extensive review processes, including national security and foreign policy reviews, intended to ensure these arms transfers safeguard U.S. interests. In addition, five different U.S. Presidents, beginning with President Carter in May 1977, have issued conventional arms transfer (CAT) policies, which provide a framework for the Executive Branch to consider these transfers. The two most recent CAT policies were the Obama administration's Presidential Policy Directive-United States Conventional Arms Transfer Policy (PPD-27), issued in January 2014, and the Trump administration's National Security Presidential Memorandum Regarding U.S. Conventional Arms Transfer Policy (NSPM-10), issued in April 2018. Both the prior and current policies required that executive branch entities take into consideration a set of criteria when evaluating proposed arms transfers. You asked us to review the U.S. governments implementation of the CAT policy.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Sep 09, 2019
- Accession Number
- AD1158036
Entities
People
- Aldo Salerno
- Elizabeth Field
- Joe Carney
- Julie Hirshen
- Mark Dowling
- Martin de Alteriis
- Owen Starlin
Organizations
- United States Government Accountability Office