The Security Assistance Monitor's Latest Arms Sales Trends report find that U.S. foreign military sales (FMS) rose to an astounding $110.9 billion in calendar year 2020, an unprecedented surge in arms offers. The contrast with prior years is stark. FMS sales averaged $63 billion per year in the first three years of the Trump administration, versus $61.5 billion per year under Obama, measured in 2019 dollars. The comparable inflation-adjusted figure for 2020 is $109.4 billion, nearly 75% more than the average figures for the Obama administration and the first three years of the Trump administration.

The United States is the single largest arms supplier to the Middle East and has been for decades. The Trump administration appears poised to increase exports to this region further. In March 2017 President Trump reversed the Obama administration's policy of tying exports to some partners to progress on human rights.

"The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic marks the most significant, singular global disruption since World War II, with health, economic, political, and security implications that will ripple for years to come." -Global Trends 2040 (2021) Global Trends 2040-A More Contested World (2021), released by the US National Intelligence Council, is the latest report in its series of reports starting in 1997 about megatrends and the world's future. This report, strongly influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic, paints a bleak picture of the future and describes a contested, fragmented and turbulent world. It specifically discusses the four main trends that will shape tomorrow's world: - Demographics-by 2040, 1.4 billion people will be added mostly in Africa and South Asia. - Economics-increased government debt and concentrated economic power will escalate problems for the poor and middleclass. - Climate-a hotter world will increase water, food, and health insecurity. - Technology-the emergence of new technologies could both solve and cause problems for human life. Students of trends, policymakers, entrepreneurs, academics, journalists and anyone eager for a glimpse into the next decades, will find this report, with colored graphs, essential reading.

Presents different views on the status of the arms trade worldwide, the justifications for this trade, possible arms trade controls, and other concerns.

Developed by the Rand Corporation, the site contains chapters covering an Introduction; Background; Explaining China's Arms Transfers; Possible Constraints on China's Arms; Implications for the United States; An Overview of China's Arms Sales; and a Bibliography.

The 52nd edition of the SIPRI Yearbook analyses developments in 2020 in security and conflicts; military spending and armaments; non-proliferation; arms control; and disarmament.