China, Turkey, Czech Republic Among Top Small Arms Exporters

China, Turkey and the Czech Republic have joined the list of the world's top exporters of small arms, which is led by the United States, according to the latest UN figures.

The UN statistics for 2011 from the United Nations Commodity Trade Statistics Database released Monday show that Italy joined the list of the top importers of small arms, which is also topped by the United States.

The value of the global trade in small arms and light weapons almost doubled between 2001 and 2011 — from USD 2.38B to USD 4.63B.

The number of countries exporting at least USD 100M of small arms per year increased to 14 from 12 in 2010. The list was led by the United States and followed by Italy, Germany, Brazil, Austria, Switzerland, Israel, Russia, South Korea, Belgium, China, Turkey, Spain and the Czech Republic, the survey showed. Sweden dropped off the list because its exports fell from USD 132M in 2010 to USD 44M in 2011.

The eight countries that imported at least USD 100M of small arms in 2011 were the United States, Canada, Germany, Australia, Thailand, United Kingdom, France and Italy. South Korea dropped from the list because its imports fell from USD 130M in 2010 to USD 40M in 2011.

The Small Arms Survey is an independent research project located at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva. It is supported by the Swiss Foreign Ministry and contributions from 10 countries including the United States and the European Union.