Pros and Cons of International Weapons Procurement Collaboration

摘要

Over the past few years, U.S. policymakers have become increasingly interested inpursuing collaborative arrangements with our allies. Cost appears to be a major incentive: As military technologies become more complex and more expensive, even the U.S. national market is becoming too small comfortably to support the costs of developing and producing new weapons systems. By combining defense procurement with other nations, the U.S. government may be able to reduce the average cost of a given weapons system. In addition, collaborative programs offer the potential for greater operational integration of allied forces and greater political integration through shared training and doctrine. However, substantial anecdotal evidence suggests that the predicted cost savings from collaboration rarely are achieved. This failure appears to occur primarily because few collaborative programs result in a rational division of work, economic specialization, or the elimination of RD (research and development) redundancy. Furthermore, collaborative programs have a mixed record on the achievement of operational and political objectives such as the promotion of equipment interoperability and standardization and the promotion of alliance cohesion and support for friendly nations. One problem in the past with transatlantic programs, for example, has been the difference between U.S. and European emphases on objectives for