The UK and the Post-Cold War Triple Transition in Arms Trade Regulation

This paper will examine post-Cold War trends in the UK’s approach to arms trade regulation. It will argue that the UK’s approach has reflected a triple transition in Western approaches to arms trade regulation: (i) a shift from arguments for both sales and restrictions understood in Cold War balance of power terms to sales now viewed more in terms of the economic benefits they bring (ii) a shift from a concern to limit East-West transfers to a concern with (certain kinds) of North-South transfers (iii) a shift from a Cold War concern with major weapons transfers and their impact on regional power balances to a problematisation of the trade in small arms. The paper will conclude that debates over the UK’s adoption of ‘ethical arms sales’ principles and its role in promoting initiatives such as the ATT need to be understood in the context of these shifts in approach.