Arms Transfer Dependence and Strategic Autonomy

• In Event: Security at Home and Abroad

Abstract

Reliance on trade partners can create considerable strategic vulnerabilities when it comes to arms transfers. States with dependencies on weapons exporters can find themselves in complex situations when they attempt to engage in violent actions against another state. The dependent state can see its strategic autonomy severely restrained, but some significant actors in the international remain strategically autonomous while being dependent on arms transfers, including India and Saudi Arabia. Both have experienced interstate conflicts and were able to minimize the external pressures and maximize their status despite the potential drawbacks of their dependencies. How do states maximize their strategic autonomy under the condition of arms transfer dependencies?

Author

• Louis-Philippe Morneau, Concordia University