Arms Sales and the Sino-Russian Relationship

A new report from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute has shed light on one of most important developments in the international arms trade market of the past 10 years: the decline in Russian arms sales to China. While diplomatic relations between the two powers remain relatively strong, their trade in arms has collapsed since the middle of the last decade. The cause of this collapse stems not from any substantial political conflict between the two, but rather from "ordinary" tensions that afflict great power relations. While the greatest immediate impact of this development will be felt by Russia and China, the deterioration of the two countries' arms relationship is anything but a local concern. U.S., Indian and Japanese grand strategies depend to a great extent on the health of the Sino-Russian relationship.