Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation

U.S. Arms Sales Agreements with the Middle East, 1999-2006

by Travis Sharp [contact information]

Updated March 4, 2008

See our Jan-Feb 2008 report, op-ed, and press release on the U.S. sale of controversial JDAM technology to Saudi Arabia.

Check out our analysis of U.S. arms sales agreements worldwide.

The United States is far and away the leader in arms sales agreements with the Middle East. Consider the following:

• From 1999 to 2006, the United States totaled $46.4 billion in arms sales agreements with the Middle East and South Asia.
• From 1999 to 2006, the United States averaged $5.8 billion per year in arms sales agreements with the Middle East and South Asia.
• From 1999 to 2006, the United States completed 56% of all arms sales agreements with the Middle East and South Asia, a proportion almost five times greater than Russia's, the second highest supplier, and over eighteen times greater than China's, a country often mentioned as an emerging "peer competitor" or "strategic opponent" to the United States.

U.S. ARMS SALES AGREEMENTS WITH SELECTED MIDDLE EAST RECIPIENTS, 1999-2006
(in millions of constant 2006 U.S. dollars)

	FY 99	FY 00	FY 01	FY 02	FY 03	FY 04	FY 05	FY 06	Total FY 99-06	Average Per Year FY 99-06
Egypt	1,804	1,319	1,437	930	853	2,008	1,129	373	9,853	1,232
Israel	1,887	779	2,472	611	425	661	574	1,080	8,488	1,061
United Arab Emirates	37	5,683	135	220	130	138	26	769	7,139	892
Saudi Arabia	687	597	593	763	616	1,736	731	796	6,520	815
Kuwait	74	158	248	901	295	105	100	791	2,673	334
Jordan	11	91	88	98	151	467	121	214	1,241	155
Oman	4	3	3	734	9	106	46	18	923	115
Iraq	0	0	0	0	0	0	222	454	676	85
Bahrain	43	145	105	88	95	69	26	94	664	83
Morocco	3	5	4	18	4	9	16	12	71	9
All Others Middle East/South Asia	3	21	8	167	454	578	1,403	5,542	8,175	1,022
Total Middle East/South Asia	4,553	8,802	5,094	4,531	3,032	5,876	4,393	10,143	46,423	5,803
Notes: Figures include Foreign Military Sales (FMS), Foreign Military Construction Sales, and a $5.47 billion licensed commercial agreement with the UAE in FY 00 for 80 F-16s. Adjustments for inflation made using DOD budget deflator. See Defense Security Cooperation Agency, "Historical Facts Book: As of September 30, 2006," pps. 1-13. "All Others" category includes: Afghanistan, Algeria, Bangladesh, India, Iran, Lebanon, Libya, Nepal, Pakistan (which received a $3.5 billion package of F-16 fighters in FY 06, which explains the large spike in the overall FY 06 total), Qatar, Sri Lanka, Syria, Tunisia, and Yemen.