Cascade of arms : managing conventional weapons proliferation / Andrew J. Pierre, editor.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

1. Introduction / Andrew J. Pierre -- Pt. 1. Patterns and Trends in Arms Transfers and Prospective Developments. 2. The Conventional Arms Trade / Ian Anthony. 3. The Subterranean Arms Trade: Black-Market Sales, Covert Operations and Ethnic Warfare / Michael T. Klare -- Pt. 2. The Changing Economics of Arms Production and Sales. 4. Advanced Industrialized Countries / Ethan B. Kapstein. 5. Developing Countries / Andrew L. Ross -- Pt. 3. Arms Sales Policies and Practices of Major Suppliers. 6. United States / Janne E. Nolan. 7. Western Europe / Lawrence Freedman and Martin Navias. 8. Russia / Julian Cooper. 9. China / Gerald Segal -- Pt. 4. Principal Purchasers and Recipient Regions, Including Opportunities for Regional Arms Control. 10. The Middle East and the Persian Gulf: An Israeli Perspective / Gerald Steinberg. 11. The Middle East and the Persian Gulf: An Arab Perspective / Abdel Monem Said Aly. 12. Asia-Pacific / Andrew Mack.

13. South Asia / Rodney W. Jones -- Pt. 5. Arms Restraint: What Should Be Done? 14. "Conditionality": Linking Development Assistance to Military Expenditures / Nicole Ball. 15. Toward an International Regime for Conventional Arms Sales / Andrew J. Pierre.

With the post-cold war emphasis on the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, the neglected dimension has been the spread of advanced conventional arms. Yet these are the arms most likely to be used in conflict. They present the greatest diversion from economic and social development and are the centerpiece of regional security balances.

This book examines the policies and practices of the major arms-supplying nations, looks at the impact of weapons purchases on the principal recipient regions and the possibilities for regional arms control, and dissects the economics of arms exports for the producer nations in both the developing and industrialized worlds. The book discusses thoroughly the opportunities for, and obstacles to, achieving multilateral restraint on arms.