Singapore is world's 20th biggest arms exporter
Jump of 11 spots seen as a spike, not a trend, and is result of recent large sales
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SINGAPORE is now the world's 20th biggest arms exporter, having jumped 11 places in a year, new figures for last year reveal.
Think-tank Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (Sipri) found the volume of exports of major conventional weapons from Singapore leapt from a trend-indicator value (TIV) of 12 million in 2011 to 76 million. TIV is a common unit created by Sipri and, although based on the known unit production costs of a core set of arms, it is not representative of the financial value of the transfer.
Defence specialists told The Straits Times this surge reflects the industry's growing capabilities. "Through the pursuit of military innovations that more countries are recognising, Singapore has been improving its global competitiveness in the defence market," said Dr Michael Raska, research fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies.
