Influence through Arms Transfers: Lessons from the U.S.-Pakistani Relationship

Abstract

Arms transfer is a multidimensional process involving complex sets of relationships, interests, and outcomes. Political or diplomatic influence is one of the many motives behind arms transfers from supplier states to developing countries. During the Cold War era, arms supply was perceived by both the United States and the USSR as an important tool for creating dependencies, patron-client ties, and alliance relationships. The superpowers behaved under a generally held, though not yet fully tested belief that the supply of arms served as a major instrument for international influence, often benefiting the strategic and political interests of the supplier. This article attempts to test the linkage between arms and influence by looking at the record of the U.S. arms transfer relationship with Pakistan during 1979-91. Two central questions are: did the U.S. succeed in building a patron-client relationship with Pakistan and to what extent did the arms supply provide the U.S. with tangible influence on outcomes in specific issue areas such as nuclear nonproliferation?