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18 March 2015

China now world's 3rd largest arms exporter



China has risen to replace Germany as the third largest exporter of major weapons in the world between 2010-2014, according to a report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).

Ranked 9th in the period between 2009-2014, the volume of China's exports surged by 143 percent (by far the biggest increase by any of the top 10 exporters); while its share of the global arms export market rose from 3 to 5 percent. China sold arms to 35 states in this period, 18 of them being African nations.

The main recipients of Chinese weapons were Pakistan (41 percent), Bangladesh (16 percent) and Myanmar (12 percent)—which may have included the bombs that killed four Chinese civilians when air force fighters near the border strayed into Yunnan province last week.

The United States and Russia remained the top two exporters of arms globally, accounting for a combined 58 percent of the international arms export market. The volume of international arms transfers was reported to have risen by 16 percent on the previous five year period.

China was also ranked the third highest importer of arms globally, accounting for 5 percent of international arms imports, with the majority (61 percent) coming from Russia.

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