Social Europe

  • EU Forward Project
  • YouTube
  • Podcast
  • Books
  • Newsletter
  • Membership

Arms exports and human rights

Chiara Bonaiuti 17th January 2023

The EU makes a difference on whether arms exports are governed by values or interests—but it could do more.

arms exports,EU,human rights,not free
National and EU-level controls can restrain the export of arms to countries with dodgy human-rights records (AlexLMX/shutterstock.com)

The war in Ukraine has drawn attention to the importance of a politics of prevention when it comes to trade in general and the arms trade in particular. This should take into account the records on human rights and democracy of governments’ commercial partners.

The European Union has long striven to strengthen control of arms exports, at the national and EU levels. In 1998 the Council of the EU approved a Code of Conduct on European Arms Exports, which became a Council Common Position a decade later.

Eight criteria thereby orient member states. The second particularly concerns respect for human rights in the country of final destination as well as respect, by that country, for international humanitarian law. Principles of responsibility, prevention and accountability are mentioned in the preamble and inspire the overall stance, enforced at the national level.

Each member state has its own regulations on arms exports. These have distinct characteristics—some more strict, other more flexible or export-oriented. Assessed on the strictness of the criteria, the role of parliament and transparency, sanctions and controls, Sweden, Germany and Italy have a tradition of more stringent and prescriptive regulations. France and the United Kingdom (considered here pre- and post-Brexit) are more pro-export, despite deep differences in their relationships between the state and the arms market.

Legislation can work

Have these regulations at the national and EU levels affected EU arms-export practices? And have member states taken into account the human-rights records of the importing countries?

These questions can be answered using two main sources: the arms transfers database of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (which calculates trend-indicator values of exports of conventional major weapons systems) and Freedom House (which calculates degrees of freedom and civil and political rights, hence classifying countries as ‘free’, ‘partially free’ or ‘not free’). Combining them, the values and percentages of arms exports to ‘not free’ countries can be calculated, at national and EU levels.

The arms market in the EU is very concentrated: the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Sweden, Spain and the Netherlands supply 94 per cent of EU arms exports. Figure 1 shows the trend for five countries in the three decades to 2020.

Figure 1: percentage of conventional arms exports to ‘not free’ countries from five European countries

Picture 1 2
Source: SIPRI Arms Transfers Database (various years) and Freedom House Country and Territory Ratings and Statuses, 1973-2021

In the 2010s, two of these six countries exported at least half of their global arms exports to ‘not free’ countries: the UK (57 per cent) and France (50 per cent). This proportion was lower for the other main EU exporters: Italy (36.4 per cent), Sweden (34.5) and Germany (26.2). Those countries with stricter arms-export controls thus send lower shares of arms to countries violating human rights. This might indicate that such legislation can work.

Market fundamentalism

Comparing the last decade with that from 1990, all the states analysed however increased the proportion of exports to countries with poor human-rights records over the period. Italy’s share to ‘not free’ countries rose from 3.1 per cent in 1990-2000 to 36.4 per cent in 2010-2020, Sweden’s from 4 to 34.5 per cent and Germany’s from 2.6 to 26.2 per cent. Starting from a higher base, the increases were not so marked yet still substantial for France (28.8 to 50 per cent) and the UK (26.9 to 57.3 per cent).

True, the number of ‘not free’ countries designated by Freedom House has risen constantly since 2006. And the outbreak of conflicts involving states with high spending capacity but low human-rights records has increased the demand for armaments, satisfied in significant measure by EU member states.

But all the countries analysed have also been subjected to a process of ‘marketisation’ and associated easing of arms exports in recent decades, intertwining with Europeanisation and globalisation. There has been a ‘secularisation’ of the arms market via a neoliberal narrative based on market fundamentalism, which has interpreted social justice and respect for human rights as a consequence of unregulated competition. This marketisation, reflected in the increasing influence of economic variables at the expense of ethical and strategic concerns, has been identified by scholars in several EU countries, including Sweden, Italy, the UK, Germany and France.

Distinctive identity

Yet, despite the rising trend of arms exported to ‘not free’ countries, the EU is more attentive to human-rights records than is the rest of the world. In Figure 2 the blue line indicates the share of EU arms exports between 2004 and 2021 going to ‘not free’ countries; the orange line charts the same ratio for the destination of world arms exports.

Figure 2: seven-year simple moving averages of EU conventional arms exports to ‘not free’ countries (as % of EU arms exports) and world conventional arms exports to ‘not free’ countries (as % of world arms exports)

Picture 2 1
Source: SIPRI Arms Transfers Database (various years) and Freedom House Country and Territory Ratings and Statuses, 1973-2021

Both follow a rising trajectory but the EU ratio is always lower. The distance between the two lines indicates the value the EU adds in attention to human rights and democracy in this arena—the gap represents what distinguishes the EU from the rest of the world.

The EU has a distinctive identity with regard to attention to human rights. And arms-export controls, if formulated strictly, can be effective and reduce arms exports to countries with poor human-rights records or scant respect for democracy. The aim is to achieve universality beyond any dichotomy or double standard.

Even strict regulations are however not used enough. Strengthening them could enrich the EU toolkit to promote democracy and human rights, reinforcing the union’s identity and working toward rebuilding the fabric of arms control. This is an essential step towards a peaceful international system.

A fuller version of this argument is available in European Foreign Affairs Review

Chiara Bonaiuti
Chiara Bonaiuti

Chiara Bonaiuti is a research associate at the Jean Monnet Centre of Newcastle University and postdoctoral researcher at the Istituto di Ricerche Economiche e Sociali (IRES) co-founded by CGIL Toscana. She has published books and essays on arms control and disarmament.

Harvard University Press Advertisement

Social Europe Ad - Promoting European social policies

We need your help.

Support Social Europe for less than €5 per month and help keep our content freely accessible to everyone. Your support empowers independent publishing and drives the conversations that matter. Thank you very much!

Social Europe Membership

Click here to become a member

Most Recent Articles

u421983467f bb39 37d5862ca0d5 0 Ending Britain’s “Brief Encounter” with BrexitStefan Stern
u421983485 2 The Future of American Soft PowerJoseph S. Nye
u4219834676d582029 038f 486a 8c2b fe32db91c9b0 2 Trump Can’t Kill the Boom: Why the US Economy Will Roar Despite HimNouriel Roubini
u42198346fb0de2b847 0 How the Billionaire Boom Is Fueling Inequality—and Threatening DemocracyFernanda Balata and Sebastian Mang
u421983441e313714135 0 Why Europe Needs Its Own AI InfrastructureDiane Coyle

Most Popular Articles

startupsgovernment e1744799195663 Governments Are Not StartupsMariana Mazzucato
u421986cbef 2549 4e0c b6c4 b5bb01362b52 0 American SuicideJoschka Fischer
u42198346769d6584 1580 41fe 8c7d 3b9398aa5ec5 1 Why Trump Keeps Winning: The Truth No One AdmitsBo Rothstein
u421983467 a350a084 b098 4970 9834 739dc11b73a5 1 America Is About to Become the Next BrexitJ Bradford DeLong
u4219834676ba1b3a2 b4e1 4c79 960b 6770c60533fa 1 The End of the ‘West’ and Europe’s FutureGuillaume Duval
u421983462e c2ec 4dd2 90a4 b9cfb6856465 1 The Transatlantic Alliance Is Dying—What Comes Next for Europe?Frank Hoffer
u421983467 2a24 4c75 9482 03c99ea44770 3 Trump’s Trade War Tears North America Apart – Could Canada and Mexico Turn to Europe?Malcolm Fairbrother
u4219834676e2a479 85e9 435a bf3f 59c90bfe6225 3 Why Good Business Leaders Tune Out the Trump Noise and Stay FocusedStefan Stern
u42198346 4ba7 b898 27a9d72779f7 1 Confronting the Pandemic’s Toxic Political LegacyJan-Werner Müller
u4219834676574c9 df78 4d38 939b 929d7aea0c20 2 The End of Progess? The Dire Consequences of Trump’s ReturnJoseph Stiglitz

Eurofound advertisement

Ageing workforce
How are minimum wage levels changing in Europe?

In a new Eurofound Talks podcast episode, host Mary McCaughey speaks with Eurofound expert Carlos Vacas Soriano about recent changes to minimum wages in Europe and their implications.

Listeners can delve into the intricacies of Europe's minimum wage dynamics and the driving factors behind these shifts. The conversation also highlights the broader effects of minimum wage changes on income inequality and gender equality.

Listen to the episode for free. Also make sure to subscribe to Eurofound Talks so you don’t miss an episode!

LISTEN NOW

Foundation for European Progressive Studies Advertisement

Spring Issues

The Spring issue of The Progressive Post is out!


Since President Trump’s inauguration, the US – hitherto the cornerstone of Western security – is destabilising the world order it helped to build. The US security umbrella is apparently closing on Europe, Ukraine finds itself less and less protected, and the traditional defender of free trade is now shutting the door to foreign goods, sending stock markets on a rollercoaster. How will the European Union respond to this dramatic landscape change? .


Among this issue’s highlights, we discuss European defence strategies, assess how the US president's recent announcements will impact international trade and explore the risks  and opportunities that algorithms pose for workers.


READ THE MAGAZINE

Hans Böckler Stiftung Advertisement

WSI Report

WSI Minimum Wage Report 2025

The trend towards significant nominal minimum wage increases is continuing this year. In view of falling inflation rates, this translates into a sizeable increase in purchasing power for minimum wage earners in most European countries. The background to this is the implementation of the European Minimum Wage Directive, which has led to a reorientation of minimum wage policy in many countries and is thus boosting the dynamics of minimum wages. Most EU countries are now following the reference values for adequate minimum wages enshrined in the directive, which are 60% of the median wage or 50 % of the average wage. However, for Germany, a structural increase is still necessary to make progress towards an adequate minimum wage.

DOWNLOAD HERE

KU Leuven advertisement

The Politics of Unpaid Work

This new book published by Oxford University Press presents the findings of the multiannual ERC research project “Researching Precariousness Across the Paid/Unpaid Work Continuum”,
led by Valeria Pulignano (KU Leuven), which are very important for the prospects of a more equal Europe.

Unpaid labour is no longer limited to the home or volunteer work. It infiltrates paid jobs, eroding rights and deepening inequality. From freelancers’ extra hours to care workers’ unpaid duties, it sustains precarity and fuels inequity. This book exposes the hidden forces behind unpaid labour and calls for systemic change to confront this pressing issue.

DOWNLOAD HERE FOR FREE

ETUI advertisement

HESA Magazine Cover

What kind of impact is artificial intelligence (AI) having, or likely to have, on the way we work and the conditions we work under? Discover the latest issue of HesaMag, the ETUI’s health and safety magazine, which considers this question from many angles.

DOWNLOAD HERE

Social Europe

Our Mission

Team

Article Submission

Advertisements

Membership

Social Europe Archives

Themes Archive

Politics Archive

Economy Archive

Society Archive

Ecology Archive

Miscellaneous

RSS Feed

Legal Disclosure

Privacy Policy

Copyright

Social Europe ISSN 2628-7641