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asia’s growing defense budgets have turned it into a lucrative arms market, including for european producers of arms and defense-related technologies. although the volume of european arms sales to asia is not in the same league as Russia or the us, its arms and technology exports still make a significant contribution to military modernization programs in the region. Nevertheless, european arms exports to asia are to a large degree driven by commercial interests and less so by security policy or strategic concerns.

europe could make a stronger impact on asian security if it were able to co-ordinate its armaments companies into a more coherent approach, working along specific policies linked to its overall strategy in the region. For instance, as a result of the growing power gap in the region in China’s favor, most asian states are acquiring asymmetric capabilities, and europe could make a decision to channel its arms exports, related technology and dual-use exports to specific countries to support these efforts. Moreover, despite the eu arms embargo on beijing, european countries continue to transfer arms-related technology and dual-use items to China, and if it wanted to, brussels could enforce even stricter export regulations. The eu could also consider closer coordination with the us in selling arms and technologies to asia. however, it seems unlikely that european countries and their arms producers would be able to agree on an overarching arms export policy to asia, at least in the near future, and europe also has to take into consideration its overall relationship with China.