It went down to 138 billion from $175 billion
US arms exports fall 21% in fiscal year 2021
The Biden administration intends to adopt a new arms export policy.
AFP
The US State Department said yesterday that sales of US military equipment to foreign governments fell 21% to about 138 billion dollars in the past fiscal year, as the administration of President Joe Biden shifted from its predecessor's approach of excessive sales of weapons.
The US State Department revealed military sales figures for the 2021 fiscal year, which ended on September 30.
Sales included AH-64E Apache helicopters worth $3.5 billion to Australia, and CH-53K helicopters worth $3.4 billion to Israel.
Total US military hardware sales in the previous fiscal year amounted to $175 billion.
The administration of President Joe Biden intends to announce a new arms export policy that focuses on human rights when evaluating arms sales.
The decline in 2021 follows exceptionally high sales of combat aircraft and guided missiles in the final year of the administration of former President Donald Trump.
Major financial deals for 2020 included Japan's purchase of 63 F-35 fighter jets from Lockheed Martin, amounting to $23 billion of that year's total.
There are two main ways in which foreign governments can purchase arms from US companies. The first is direct commercial sales negotiated between the government and the company, and the second is foreign military sales, where a foreign government usually contacts a Defense Department official at the US embassy in its capital.
Both methods require US government approval.
The US State Department said that direct military sales from US companies fell 17% to $103 billion in fiscal year 2021 from $124 billion in fiscal year 2020, while sales that are arranged through the US government fell 31% to $34.8 billion in 2021. from $50.8 billion in the previous year.
The Trump administration launched a "Buy American" program that eased restrictions on military sales, while encouraging US officials to take a greater role in increasing the US arms industry's activity abroad.
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