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Arms Transfers: U.S. and Russia’s Biggest Trading Partners

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This graphic highlights trade partners for U.S. and Russia arms transfers

Arms Transfers: U.S. and Russia’s Biggest Trading Partners

The increase in conflicts worldwide, including in Ukraine and the Middle East, has shifted global focus back onto arms transfers between countries.

For decades, countries proficient in arms manufacturing have supplied weapons to other countries in demand of them. At the helm of these trades are the U.S. and Russia, which have accounted for 57% of all international arms trades in the last 10 years.

So who are the largest importers of arms from these two countries, and what is the military value of these trades?

With the help of data from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) arms transfer database, the above infographic by Ruben Berge Mathisen visualizes the top 50 biggest arms recipients by value for both the U.S. and Russia in the last decade.

The Military Valuation of Arms Transfers

The military valuation of arms is measured in terms of trend-indicator values (TIV). This valuation reflects the military capability of a particular item rather than its financial value.

Every weapon that falls under the conventional definition of major arms is allotted a TIV. The following are the most common weapons and components to be assigned a TIV.

  • Aircraft and armored vehicles
  • Artillery (>100mm in caliber)
  • Sensors and guided missiles, large air defense guns, torpedoes, and bombs
  • 100mm caliber artillery-armed ships (>100-tonne displacement)
  • Reconnaissance satellites and air refueling systems

Instead of focusing on budget, examining TIV makes it easier to measure trends in the flow of arms between particular countries and regions over time, essentially creating a military capability price index.

Biggest Recipients of U.S. Armaments

The United States is the largest exporter of arms globally, responsible for 35% of global exports over the last 10 years to about 130 nations.

Most recently, the biggest market for U.S. arms sales has been in the Middle East, with Saudi Arabia being the most prominent recipient of weapons. Over the last decade, the country has purchased 24% of total U.S. arms exports, with components worth over 18 billion TIVs.

Here is a look at the top 50 recipients of arms from the United States:

U.S. Arms Transfer RecipientContinentTIV (Millions)
🇸🇦 Saudi ArabiaAsia18,641
🇦🇺 AustraliaOceania8,668
🇰🇷 South KoreaAsia7,207
🇦🇪 UAEAsia7,190
🇯🇵 JapanAsia5,026
🇮🇳 IndiaAsia4,614
🇬🇧 United KingdomEurope4,332
🇶🇦 QatarAsia4,235
🇹🇼 TaiwanAsia3,789
🇹🇷 TurkeyAsia3,722
🇮🇶 IraqAsia3,532
🇮🇱 IsraelAsia3,460
🇸🇬 SingaporeAsia2,571
🇦🇫 AfghanistanAsia2,547
🇪🇬 EgyptAfrica2,334
🇮🇹 ItalyEurope2,281
🇲🇦 MoroccoAfrica2,281
🇳🇴 NorwayEurope2,196
🇳🇱 NetherlandsEurope2,060
🇰🇼 KuwaitAsia1,900
🇨🇦 CanadaAmericas1,806
🇵🇰 PakistanAsia1,070
🇮🇩 IndonesiaAsia982
🇲🇽 MexicoAmericas782
🇴🇲 OmanAsia779
🇯🇴 JordanAsia675
🇩🇰 DenmarkEurope548
🇧🇷 BrazilAmericas510
🇸🇪 SwedenEurope505
🇨🇴 ColombiaAmericas472
🇵🇭 PhilippinesAsia450
🇫🇷 FranceEurope438
🇫🇮 FinlandEurope389
🇬🇷 GreeceEurope359
🇱🇧 LebanonAsia350
🇹🇭 ThailandAsia342
🇵🇱 PolandEurope336
🇨🇱 ChileAmericas335
🇪🇸 SpainEurope292
🇷🇴 RomaniaEurope275
🇹🇳 TunisiaAfrica251
🇩🇪 GermanyEurope221
🇧🇭 BahrainAsia187
🇵🇹 PortugalEurope179
🇳🇬 NigeriaAfrica154
🇳🇿 New ZealandOceania150
🇧🇩 BangladeshAsia123
🇨🇭 SwitzerlandEurope117
🇻🇳 VietnamAsia108
🇦🇷 ArgentinaAmericas103

The U.S. remains the biggest global exporter of weapons globally, however, sales of military equipment to foreign countries dipped by 21% over the previous fiscal year, dropping from $175 billion in 2020 to $138 billion in 2021.

Biggest Recipients of Russian Armaments

Russia, the world’s second-largest arms dealer, was responsible for 22% of global arms exports between 2011 and 2021.

In terms of TIVs, India remains the biggest importer of Russian weapons by a wide margin. India’s dependency on Russian-made arms is driven by its fight to quell the military assertiveness of China on one side and its constant skirmishes along the Pakistani border on the other.

But despite the continued support of Russia and its President by the Indian Prime Minister, even in the wake of Russia’s war on Ukraine, some reports have shown that India has been looking elsewhere for arms in the last few years.

Let’s take a look at some of the other biggest importers of Russian arms around the world:

Russian Arms Transfer RecipientContinentTIV (Millions)
🇮🇳 IndiaAsia22,869
🇨🇳 ChinaAsia9,419
🇩🇿 AlgeriaAfrica7,235
🇻🇳 VietnamAsia5,554
🇪🇬 EgyptAfrica3,998
🇮🇶 IraqAsia2,015
🇦🇿 AzerbaijanAsia1,967
🇰🇿 KazakhstanAsia1,841
🇻🇪 VenezuelaAmericas1,743
🇸🇾 SyriaAsia1,729
🇧🇾 BelarusEurope1,190
🇲🇲 MyanmarAsia856
🇺🇬 UgandaAfrica611
🇦🇪 UAEAsia578
🇦🇴 AngolaAfrica501
🇮🇩 IndonesiaAsia490
🇮🇷 IranAsia476
🇧🇩 BangladeshAsia454
🇦🇫 AfghanistanAsia441
🇵🇰 PakistanAsia437
🇦🇲 ArmeniaAsia373
🇹🇷 TurkeyAsia344
🇹🇲 TurkmenistanAsia307
🇷🇸 SerbiaEurope296
🇳🇬 NigeriaAfrica249
🇸🇩 SudanAfrica244
🇵🇪 PeruAmericas221
🇯🇴 JordanAsia204
🇲🇳 MongoliaAsia171
🇺🇿 UzbekistanAsia156
🇳🇮 NicaraguaAmericas121
🇱🇦 LaosAsia118
🇰🇼 KuwaitAsia113
🇧🇷 BrazilAmericas98
🇸🇸 South SudanAfrica82
🇲🇱 MaliAfrica73
🇪🇹 EthiopiaAfrica69
🇹🇭 ThailandAsia68
🇿🇦South AfricaAfrica50
🇨🇲 CameroonAfrica45
🇰🇬 KyrgyzstanAsia41
🇷🇼 RwandaAfrica41
🇶🇦 QatarAsia40
🇱🇾 LibyaAfrica36
🇧🇭 BahrainAsia31
🇹🇯 TajikistanAsia30
🇨🇾 CyprusAsia28
🇨🇬 Republic of the CongoAfrica27
🇬🇭 GhanaAfrica27
🇺🇦 Ukraine RebelsEurope24

One relationship of significance is Russia’s provided weapons to Pro-Russia Ukrainian Rebels. Since 2014, Russia has offered arms and training to these rebels in their fight. These have included weapons of all sorts, from pistols and mines to tanks and missile launchers.

Effect of the War on Ukraine on Arms Trades

According to the latest data from SIPRI, the international arms trade fell by 4.6% in the last five-year period. Despite this, Europe has become a new hotspot for arms imports, seeing a 19% increase in arms transfers over the same time period.

Countries like the U.K., Netherlands, and Norway were the largest importers, and other countries might follow suit.

Experts claim that this upsurge is attributed to the crumbling relationship between Russia and Europe. Alarmed by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, European countries have been reevaluating their defense budgets—as exemplified by Germany’s recent €100 billion commitment to boost its military strength.

In the coming years, the U.S. and Russia’s biggest arms transfer partners are likely to shift. But which way will arms transfers trend?

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This article was published as a part of Visual Capitalist's Creator Program, which features data-driven visuals from some of our favorite Creators around the world.

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Timeline: Cannabis Legislation in the U.S.

At the federal level, cannabis is illegal, but state laws differ. This graphic looks at the timelines of cannabis legislation in the U.S.

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cannabis legalization timeline in U.S. states

cannabis legalization timeline in U.S. states

Timeline: Cannabis Legislation in the U.S.

At the federal level, cannabis is still considered an illegal substance. That said, individual states do have the right to determine their own laws around cannabis sales and usage.

This visual from New Frontier Data looks at the status of cannabis in every state and the timeline of when medical and/or recreational use became legal.

Cannabis Through the Years

In the U.S., the oldest legalese concerning cannabis dates back to the 1600s—the colony of Virginia required every farm to grow and produce hemp. Since then, cannabis use was fairly wide open until the 1930s when the Marihuana Tax Act was enforced, prohibiting marijuana federally but still technically allowing medical use.

Jumping ahead, the Controlled Substances Act was passed in 1970, classifying cannabis as Schedule I drug—the same category as heroin. This prohibited any use of the substance.

However, the 1970s also saw a counter movement, wherein many states made the move towards decriminalization. Decriminalization means that although possessing cannabis remained illegal, a person would not be subject to jail time or prosecution for possessing certain amounts.

By the 1990s, some of the first states passed laws to allow the medical usage of cannabis, and by 2012 two states in the U.S.—Washington and Colorado—legalized the recreational use of cannabis.

Cannabis Legislation Today and Beyond

The MORE Act (the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act) was passed in the House early 2022, and if made law, it would decriminalize marijuana federally.

“This bill decriminalizes marijuana. Specifically, it removes marijuana from the list of scheduled substances under the Controlled Substances Act and eliminates criminal penalties for an individual who manufactures, distributes, or possesses marijuana.”– U.S. Congress

Cannabis still remains illegal at the federal level, but at the state levels, cannabis is now fully legal (both for medicinal and recreational purposes) in a total of 22 states.

Over 246 million Americans have legal access to some form of marijuana products with high THC levels. Looking to the future, many new cannabis markets are expected to open up in the next few years:

Potential cannabis legalization timeline in U.S. states

The earliest states expected to open up next for recreational cannabis sales are Minnesota and Oklahoma. There is always a lag between legalization and actual sales, wherein local regulatory bodies and governments set standards. States like Kentucky, on the other hand, aren’t likely to even legalize medicinal cannabis until 2028.

It’s estimated that by 2030, there will be 69 million cannabis consumers in the country, up 33% from 2022.

Overall, the U.S. cannabis market is likely an important one to watch as legal sales hit $30 billion in 2022. By the end of the decade, that number is expected to be anywhere from $58 billion to as much as $72 billion.

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