Importing Status: US Arms Sales, Military Aid, and Importer Prestige

• In Event: Demonstrations of Reputation and Commitment in Foreign Policy

Abstract

Our belief is that status and prestige considerations are primarily leader-centric. Leaders’ view of their status can be actual or perceived. In fact, status can come in many forms, but can be distilled down into two types; achieved and ascribed status. Achieved status is the position of actors based on their own qualities and achievements and is usually conceptualized as material capabilities. While ascribed status is the position given to actors by other actors and is also described as international prestige. We argue that non-democratic leaders have a greater interest in gaining both types of prestige compared to democratic leaders. This desire is in part due to the audiences that different leaders are seeking to satisfy. We are interested in the relationship between arms imports and prestige, specifically arms imports from the United States. As the largest supplier of arms and the last superpower, the United States provides arms via sales and aid, we argue that the method of transfer by the United States effects the level of prestige the importer has. Additionally, we look at the type of sales– e.g. government driven, industry driven – and aid – e.g. military assistance program, excess stock.

Authors

• Aaron Shreve, Randolph College

• Richard Johnson, University of Strathclyde