| SIPRI Update: Global Security & Arms Control | June 2008 |
Welcome to the June 2008 issue of SIPRI Update: Global Security & Arms Control. This monthly newsletter will be your source for the latest developments in international security, arms control, non-proliferation and conflict, including recent SIPRI activities and publications.
In this issue:
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The Irish ‘No’ and the French Presidency: a silver lining for defence cooperation |
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Jean-Yves Haine, Senior Researcher, SIPRI
Ireland’s ‘No’ vote in the referendum on the European Union’s Lisbon Treaty is certain to dominate France’s six-month Presidency of the EU, which starts in July. But while the vote is certainly a setback for the planned development of the EU, the failure (or at least the delay) of the treaty has opened up new opportunities for enhanced cooperation on security and defence by EU members.
By rejecting the Lisbon Treaty, Ireland has plunged the EU into a serious crisis. The fears expressed by those who voted ‘No’ were only remotely related to the treaty, but its incomprehensible text would have discouraged even the most ardent supporter of Europe. The President of the European Commission, José Manuel Barroso, backed by France and Germany, has stated that the ratification process will continue and the British Foreign Secretary, David Milliband, has insisted that the treaty will be debated in the British Parliament this week. Meanwhile, President Václav Klaus of the Czech Republic, which will hold the EU Presidency in the first half of 2009, has declared the treaty dead. The debate on the reform of EU institutions that was launched in 2001 is now back to square one. Since the Lisbon Treaty, the result of intense and painful negotiations in 2007 to find a substitute for the failed 2004 Constitutional Treaty, was already a Plan B, there is no obvious way out of this crisis—the only option that can be excluded seems to be a full renegotiation.
| Official launch of SIPRI Yearbook 2008 | Back to top |
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SIPRI Yearbook 2008, an annual compendium of data and analysis on armaments, disarmament, and international security, was officially launched at the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs on 9 June. The press launch and key findings of SIPRI Yearbook 2008 were cited in the International Herald Tribune, Agence France-Presse, Forbes, The Guardian (Nigeria), RIA Novosti, Nezavisimaya Gazeta (in Russian), Al Jazeera, People’s Daily, and The Nation (Pakistan), among many others. More on SIPRI Yearbook 2008, including chapter summaries and ordering information, is available at yearbook2008.sipri.org. For more details of the launch, see below. |
| Upcoming SIPRI events | Back to top |
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16–20 June |
SIPRI at the Eurosatory 2008 defence exhibition SIPRI will organize seminars throughout the Eurosatory 2008 defence exhibition to disseminate its research findings related to peace and conflict, disarmament, and international security, with an emphasis on the need for greater restraint and transparency in armaments and global security policy. Military and civilian planning and procurement officials, representatives of the arms industry and the media will participate in this exhibition. Contact Siemon Wezeman or Pieter Wezeman of the SIPRI Arms Transfers Project for more information. |
| Recent SIPRI events | Back to top |
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4 June |
Emerging global challenges and transatlantic relations SIPRI, the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), and the Embassy of Sweden co-organized a new transatlantic roundtable series on ‘Emerging global trends and transatlantic relations’. The roundtable was launched by Sweden’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, Carl Bildt, who delivered the keynote address, and CSIS Counselor and Board Member Zbigniew Brzezinski. Click here for more information. |
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9 June |
Launch of SIPRI Yearbook 2008 The 39th edition of the SIPRI Yearbook was officially launched at the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Stockholm. After SIPRI Director Bates Gill spoke on the window of opportunity for arms control over the next few years, SIPRI researchers Ekaterina Stepanova, Sam Perlo-Freeman and Shannon Kile provided briefings of the main Yearbook findings. SIPRI Governing Board member Jayantha Dhanapala concluded by speaking on how the SIPRI Yearbook is used by researchers, diplomats and policymakers around the world. Videos of the press launch and more information about the Yearbook are available at yearbook2008.sipri.org. |
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9–10 June |
Dual uses of biomedicine: whose responsibility? SIPRI and the Centre for Research Ethics and Bioethics at Uppsala University co-organized the Tenth Annual Swedish Symposium on Biomedicine, Ethics and Society. SIPRI Researcher Peter Clevestig delivered presentations on his current work on a laboratory biosecurity handbook and on life science research with dual military and civilian applications. SIPRI Researcher John Hart presented a framework analysis paper on the role of ethical considerations in past biological weapon programmes. Contact Peter Clevestig or John Hart for more information. | |
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11 June |
Revitalizing the momentum for elimination of nuclear weapons This public lecture was co-organized by the Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs, SIPRI, the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO), the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs and the Center for Pacific Asia Studies (CPAS) at Stockholm University. Speakers at the event include SIPRI Governing Board Chairman Rolf Ekéus, SIPRI Governing Board member Jayantha Dhanapala and Executive Secretary of the CTBTO Tibor Tóth. Contact the Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs for more information. |
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| SIPRI in the media | Back to top |
SIPRI Research Associate Mark Bromley gave an assessment of the latest trends in military spending in South America in The Economist and spoke on the EU Code of Conduct on Arms Exports to Euronews.
SIPRI Researcher Vitaly Fedchenko commented on Iran’s nuclear technology developments and its international obligations and Russian military capabilities in interviews with Nezavisimaya Gazeta (in Russian).
SIPRI Guest Researcher Tim Foxley opined on the recent international donor conference for Afghanistan in the Middle East Times.
SIPRI Director Bates Gill assessed China’s growing international clout in the International Herald Tribune, and its military and nuclear weapons capability in Dagens Nyheter (in Swedish).
SIPRI Research Associate Catalina Perdomo shared her views on regional trends in armaments and military expenditure in Latin America with El Colombiano and Radio France Internationale (in Spanish).
SIPRI Project Leader Ekaterina Stepanova discussed the latest situation in Iraq and prospects for a more inclusive and representative Iraqi government in an interview with Reuters.
SIPRI Researcher Pieter Wezeman commented on military relations between Iran and Syria to Reuters.
SIPRI Project Leader Siemon Wezeman gave an assessment of corruption in the global arms trade in an interview with the Finnish MTV3.
Figures from the SIPRI Arms Transfers Database and the SIPRI Military Expenditure Database were cited in Defense News, World Politics Review, AllAfrica, The Economic Times, Venezuelanalysis, Welt (in German), and Vedomosti (in Russian), among many others.
| SIPRI fact of the month | Back to top |
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Military spending, arms production and international arms transfers are all on the rise |
World military spending totalled $1339 billion in 2007, corresponding to 2.5 per cent of world GDP and $202 per capita. This is a real-terms increase of 6 per cent since 2006 and of 45 per cent since 1998. The factors driving increases in world military spending include aspiration to global or regional power status, actual or potential conflicts, and the availability of economic resources. Global arms production is also increasing, with arms sales by the 100 largest arms-producing companies (the ‘SIPRI Top 100’) amounting to $315 billion in 2006, an increase of 8 per cent in nominal terms over 2005. US companies dominate the Top 100, both numerically and financially. International transfers of major conventional weapons over the period 2003–2007 were 7 per cent higher than in 2002–2006. The five largest arms suppliers for the period 2003–2007—the USA, Russia, Germany, France and the UK—accounted for about 80 per cent of the volume of transfers. These findings are taken from SIPRI Yearbook 2008. Read more about the Yearbook below. |
| SIPRI’s latest publications | Back to top |
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The Impact on Domestic Policy of the EU Code of Conduct on Arms Exports: The Czech Republic, the Netherlands and Spain
SIPRI Policy Paper no. 21 Mark Bromley Published by Stockholm International Peace Research Institute May 2008 Download from books.sipri.org |
June 2008 marks the 10th anniversary of the European Union Code of Conduct on Arms Exports. This new SIPRI Policy Paper examines the impact of the EU Code over its first 10 years via a close examination of three middle-ranking arms exporters: the Czech Republic, Spain and the Netherlands. The picture that emerges is of a dynamic agreement in which smaller member states have had a strong hand in pushing developments forward.
The author gathered much of the evidence for how the Code of Conduct works in practice directly from the officials who implement it and the politicians and campaigners who monitor their decisions. His detailed study of the mechanisms of development and implementation of the Code of Conduct allows him to present recommendations for how it could be strengthened and made to function more effectively.
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SIPRI Yearbook 2008 Armaments, Disarmament and International Security Stockholm International Peace Research Institute Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of SIPRI ISBN 978-0-19-954895-8 ISSN 0953-0282 hardback 604 pp. £85/$150 Order from the OUP website (UK or USA) or from all good bookshops and online booksellers |
The SIPRI Yearbook is a compendium of data and analysis in the areas of
- Security and conflicts
- Military spending and armaments
- Non-proliferation, arms control and disarmament
Highlights of the 39th edition include special studies on
- a call to arms control
- the human security approach to direct and structural violence
- integrating gender in post-conflict security sector reform
- US ballistic missile defence programmes
- nuclear forensic analysis
- international public health diplomacy and the global surveillance of avian influenza
along with coverage of developments during 2007 in
- Euro-Atlantic security institutions and relationships
- armed conflicts
- peace operations
- military expenditure
- arms production
- international arms transfers
- nuclear arms control and non-proliferation
- world nuclear forces and fissile material stocks
- reducing security threats from chemical and biological materials
- conventional arms control
- controls on security-related international transfers
SIPRI Yearbook 2008 also has extensive annexes on arms control and disarmament agreements, international organizations and intergovernmental bodies, and a chronology of events during 2007 in the area of security and arms control.
Click here for SIPRI Yearbook 2008 ordering details.
For information on SIPRI’s other recent and forthcoming books, visit the SIPRI Publications website, books.sipri.org
Other recent publications by SIPRI authors
Vitaly Fedchenko, ‘Verifying North Korea’s declaration’, Jane’s Intelligence Review, June 2008, p. 10. Read this article here (requires subscription)
Bates Gill, ‘Debating China’s future: inside out’, China Security, vol. 4, no. 2 (spring 2008), pp. 12–13. Read this article here
Chin-hao Huang, ‘US–China relations and Darfur’, Fordham International Law Journal, vol. 31, no. 4 (April 2008), pp. 827–42. Read this article here (requires subscription)