NEW YORK -- In recent public statements, world leaders such as the pope, U.S. President Bill Clinton and World Bank President James Wolfensohn have called attention to the urgent need to end world poverty. Almost lost among their proposals to remedy the situation was any mention of the need to curb arms sales, particularly those conducted by leading industrialized nations. It is a crucial responsibility of such nations to curb sales to developing countries, not only as a way to diminish poverty, but as a critical move to achieve lasting peace.
In 1999, global arms sales shot up to $30.3 billion, the highest level since 1996. The United States strengthened its position as the biggest arms dealer, according to figures from the U.S. Congressional Research Service.
U.S. contractors in 1999 sold nearly $11.8 billion in weapons. That figure represents more than a third of the world's total, and more than all European countries combined. Since 1990, the U.S. has exported more than $133 billion worth of weapons to states around the world, many of them led by repressive regimes.