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Salient. Victoria University Student Newspaper. Volume 38, Number 10. 22nd May 1975

26-4-75 — US Arms Export Boom

26-4-75

US Arms Export Boom

The world wide arms build-up, particularly in the Middle East, has brought boom times for United States exporters of arms. Military exports by American companies have reached a new high of more than US$8 billion ($S17.6 billion) a year, and deliveries of weapons to foreign customers are growing at the fastest rate in US history. For some American arms manufacturers, the sales of weapons systems abroad has become one of their profitable lines of business. For others, it has compensated for the decline in domestic military sales that followed America's disengagement from Vietnam. Defence experts say that the boom in military sales will continue at least several more years. According to the US arms control and disarmament agency, the US was responsible in 1973 for 54.4% of the world's arms export. The Soviet Union was second with 27.5%.