Home The United States and European Defense Cooperation European Strategic Autonomy and Fighter Aircraft Procurement Decisions
Article
Licensed
Unlicensed Requires Authentication

The United States and European Defense Cooperation European Strategic Autonomy and Fighter Aircraft Procurement Decisions

  • Lucas Fernando Hellemeier EMAIL logo
Published/Copyright: November 23, 2019

Abstract

This paper addresses a topic that has taken on increasing urgency since the presidency of Donald Trump: how can the European Union member states insure strategic autonomy in military defense? One answer given by policymakers and academics alike is that an independent industrial-military base is central to achieving autonomy. In particular, the production and procurement of military equipment ought to be EU-internal. However, the US remains the most important provider of military equipment worldwide, and many EU member states continue to procure from the US. In this context, this paper asks why some EU member states procure fighter jets from the US while others procure from European sources. It hypothesizes that those countries with a security or economic dependence on the US are more likely to continue to procure from the US. The paper tests this hypothesis with a statistical analysis that seeks a relationship between indicators of security and economic dependence on the US and procurement decision. The results this analysis yields are mixed, but I find that on average European countries that decide to procure US-made fighter are more subordinate to the US.

References

Acharya, A. (2017). After liberal hegemony. The advent of a multiplex world order. Ethics & International Affairs, 31(3), 271–285.10.1017/S089267941700020XSearch in Google Scholar

Alcaro, R. (2018a). Contestation and transformation. Final thoughts on the liberal international order. The International Spectator, 53(1), 152–167.10.4324/9780429461521-11Search in Google Scholar

Alcaro, R. (2018b). The liberal order and its contestations. A conceptual framework. The International Spectator, 53(1), 1–10.10.4324/9780429461521-1Search in Google Scholar

Anderton, C. H. (1995). Economics of arms trade. In T. Sandler & K. Hartley (Eds.), Handbook of defense economics. Volume 1 (pp. 523–561). Amsterdam, Netherlands.10.1016/S1574-0013(05)80020-1Search in Google Scholar

Armament Industry European Research Group. (2018). Building the EDTIB Beyond 2020. ARES Seminar Report. Armament Industry European Research Group. Online available at http://www.iris-france.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Ares-Group-Seminar-Report-27-avril-2018.pdf, last checked November 30, 2018.Search in Google Scholar

Art, R. J., Brooks, S. G., Wohlforth, W. C., Lieber, K. A., & Alexander, G. (2005/2006). Correspondence. Striking the balance. International Security, 30(3), 177–196.10.1162/016228805775969609Search in Google Scholar

Baldwin, D. A. (1985). Economic statecraft. Princeton, NJ.Search in Google Scholar

Barbieri, K., & Keshk, O. M. G. (2016). Correlates of War Project Trade Data Set Codebook. Version 4.0. Online available at http://correlatesofwar.org, last checked April 20, 2019.Search in Google Scholar

Barbieri, K., Keshk, O. M. G., & Pollins, B. (2009). Trading data. Evaluating our assumptions and coding rules. Conflict Management and Peace Science, 26(5), 471–491.10.1177/0738894209343887Search in Google Scholar

Barnett, M. (2010). Review. Hierarchy in international relations. By David Lake. The Journal of Politics, 72(3), 912–914.10.1017/S0022381610000356Search in Google Scholar

Bekkers, F., Butter, M., Anders Eriksson, E., Frinking, E., Hartley, K., Hoffmans, D., … Willemsen, G. (2009). Development of a European Defence Technological and Industrial Base. Main Report. European Commission. Online available at http://ec.europa.eu/DocsRoom/documents/10488/attachments/1/translations, last checked December 3, 2018.Search in Google Scholar

Belin, J., Hartley, K., Lefeez, S., Linnenkamp, H., Lundmark, M., Masson, H., … Ungaro, A. R. (2017). Defence Industrial Links between the EU and the US. Armament Industry European Research Group (Report, 20). Online available at http://www.iris-france.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Ares-20-Report-EU-DTIB-Sept-2017.pdf, last checked November 30, 2018.Search in Google Scholar

Biscop, S. (2018). European defence. Give PESCO a chance. Survival, 60(3), 161–180.10.1080/00396338.2018.1470771Search in Google Scholar

Brooks, S. G. (2005). Producing security. Princeton, NJ: Multinational Corporations, Globalization, and the Changing Calculus of Conflict.10.1515/9781400841301Search in Google Scholar

Camporini, V., Hartley, K., Maulny, J.-P., & Zandee, D. (ed.) (2017). European Preference, Strategic Autonomy and the European Defence Fund. Armament Industry European Research Group (Report). Online available at http://www.iris-france.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Ares-22-Report-Nov-2017.pdf, last checked November 30, 2018.Search in Google Scholar

Capaccio, A. (2017). F-35 Program Costs Jump to $406.5 Billion in Latest Estimate. Bloomberg. Online available at https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-07-10/f-35-program-costs-jump-to-406-billion-in-new-pentagon-estimate, last checked December 2, 2018.Search in Google Scholar

Demidenko, E. (2016). The p-value you can’t buy. The American Statistician, 70(1), 33–38.10.1080/00031305.2015.1069760Search in Google Scholar

DeVore, M. R., & Weiss, M. (2014). Who’s in the cockpit? The political economy of collaborative aircraft decisions. Review of International Political Economy, 21(2), 497–533.10.1080/09692290.2013.787947Search in Google Scholar

European Union. (2012). Consolidated Version of the Treaty on European Union. Online available at https://eur-lex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:2bf140bf-a3f8-4ab2-b506-fd71826e6da6.0023.02/DOC_1&format=PDF, last checked March 15, 2019.Search in Google Scholar

European Union. (2016). Shared Vision, Common Action. A Stronger Europe. A Global Strategy for the European Union’s Foreign and Security Policy. Online available at https://cdn5-eeas.fpfis.tech.ec.europa.eu/cdn/farfuture/2rOF-JdAS8j-pKkhPt8txwI5V51A5EXAOrHQNUfwB9M/mtime:1481797831/sites/eeas/files/eugs_review_web_0.pdf, last checked September 30, 2018.Search in Google Scholar

European Union. (2019). EU Member Countries in Brief. Online available at https://europa.eu/european-union/about-eu/countries/member-countries_en, last checked April 15, 2019.Search in Google Scholar

Eyre, D. P., & Suchman, M. C. (1996). Status, norms, and the proliferation of conventional weapons. An institutional theory approach. In P. J. Katzenstein (Ed.), The culture of national security. Norms and identity in world politics (pp. 79–113). New York, NY.Search in Google Scholar

Fiott, D. (2017). A revolution too far? US defence innovation, Europe and NATO’s military-technological gap. Journal of Strategic Studies, 40(3), 417–437.10.1080/01402390.2016.1176565Search in Google Scholar

Fiott, D. (2018). Strategic Autonomy. Towards ‘European Sovereignty’ in Defence? European Union Institute for Security Studies (Brief, 12). Online available at https://www.iss.europa.eu/sites/default/files/EUISSFiles/Brief%2012%20Strategic%20Autonomy.pdf, last checked November 30, 2018.Search in Google Scholar

Garton Ash, T. (2018). It’s not just Trump. Much of America Has Turned Its Back on Europe. In: The Guardian, September 28, 2018. Online available at https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/sep/28/trump-america-europe-united-states, last checked October 1, 2018.Search in Google Scholar

Grimmett, R. F. (2011). Instances of use of United States armed forces abroad, 1798–2010. Washington, DC: Congressional Research Service.Search in Google Scholar

Hartley, K. (2008). Collaboration and European defence industrial policy. Defence and Peace Economics, 19(4), 303–315.10.1080/10242690802221585Search in Google Scholar

Hartley, K. (2017). European preference, strategic autonomy and European defence fund. An economic point of view. In: V. Camporini, K. Hartley, J.-P. Maulny, & D. Zandee (Eds.), European Preference, Strategic Autonomy and the European Defence Fund (Report) (pp. 15–21).Search in Google Scholar

Head, R. G. (1974). The weapons acquisition process. Alternative national strategies. In F. B. [III] Horton, A. C. Rogerson, & E. L. [III] Warner (Eds.), Comparative defense policy (pp. 412–425). Baltimore, MD: With a Foreword by Richard F. Rosser.Search in Google Scholar

Hirschman, A. O. (1980). National power and the structure of foreign trade. Berkeley, CA.Search in Google Scholar

Hockenos, P. (2018). Europe Needs a Clean Break From America on Security. CNN. Online available at https://edition.cnn.com/2018/08/29/opinions/europe-new-defense-policy-opinion-intl/index.html, last checked September 28, 2018.Search in Google Scholar

Hoffmann, S. (1966). Obstinate or obsolete? The fate of the nation-state and the case of Western Europe. Daedalus, 95(3), 862–915.Search in Google Scholar

Holm, E. (2001). The European Anarchy. Europe’s hard road into high politics. Copenhagen, Denmark.Search in Google Scholar

Iddon, P. (2019). How Turkey Could Be Undermining Its Opportunities to Field Fifth-Generation Aircraft. Online available at https://www.offiziere.ch/?p=35636, last checked May 9, 2019.Search in Google Scholar

International Monetary Fund. (2019). Direction of Trade Database. International Monetary Fund. Online available at https://data.imf.org/?sk=9D6028D4-F14A-464C-A2F2-59B2CD424B85, last checked April 20, 2019.Search in Google Scholar

Jandl, G. (2018). Die gemeinsame europäische Verteidigung. Was ist sie, und wenn ja wie viele? Sicherheit und Frieden (S+F) / Security and Peace, 36(4), 171–180.10.5771/0175-274X-2018-4-171Search in Google Scholar

Jervis, R. (1982). Security regimes. International Organization, 36(2), 357–378.10.1017/S0020818300018981Search in Google Scholar

Jones, S. G. (2007). The rise of European security cooperation. Cambridge, UK.10.1017/CBO9780511491443Search in Google Scholar

Keay, L. (2018). Surviving the End of US Hegemony. Istituto Affari Internazionali. Rome, Italy (IAI Commentaries). Online available at http://www.iai.it/sites/default/files/iaicom1802.pdf, last checked October 3, 2018.Search in Google Scholar

Keohane, R. O., & Nye, J. S. (1977). Power and interdependence. Boston, MA: World Politics in Transition.Search in Google Scholar

Koivula, T. (2009). Towards an EU military ethos. European Foreign Affairs Review, 14(2), 171–190.10.54648/EERR2009014Search in Google Scholar

Krotz, U. (2011). Flying Tiger. International Relations theory and the politics of advanced weapons. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199759934.001.0001Search in Google Scholar

Lake, D. A. (2009). Hierarchy in international relations. Ithaca, NY.Search in Google Scholar

Larivé, M. H. A. (2016). Debating European security and defense policy. London, UK: Understanding the Complexity.10.4324/9781315576015Search in Google Scholar

Layne, C. (2018). The US-Chinese power shift and the end of pax Americana. International Affairs, 94(1), 89–111.10.1093/ia/iix249Search in Google Scholar

Lipson, C. (1984). International co-operation in economic and security affairs. World Politics, 37(1), 1–23.10.2307/2010304Search in Google Scholar

Marrone, A. (2012/2013). Italy and the F-35. Rationales and costs. International Journal, 68(1), 31–48.10.1177/002070201306800104Search in Google Scholar

Marrone, A., & Nones, M. (ed.) (2019). Europe and the Future Combat Air System. Istituto Affari Internazionali. Rome, Italy (Documenti IAI, 19/02). Online available at https://www.iai.it/en/pubblicazioni/europe-and-future-combat-air-system, last checked April 20, 2019.Search in Google Scholar

Maulny, J.-P. (2016). Four Proposals for a Defence Procurement Plan for the European Union. Armament Industry European Research Group (Comment). Online available at http://www.iris-france.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/Comment-Four-Proposals-june-2016.pdf, last checked November 30, 2018.Search in Google Scholar

Maulny, J.-P. (2017). European preference, strategic autonomy and European defence fund. A key factor to build a european strategic autonomy based on a competitive EDTIB. In: V. Camporini, K. Hartley, J.-P. Maulny, & D. Zandee (Eds.), European Preference, Strategic Autonomy and the European Defence Fund (Report), pp. 21–25.Search in Google Scholar

Maye, D. (2017). Autarky or interdependence. U.S. vs. European security and defense industries in a globalized market. Journal of Strategic Security, 10(2), 33–47.10.5038/1944-0472.10.2.1597Search in Google Scholar

Mehta, A. (2019). Pentagon Warns of ‘Grave Consequences’ Should Turkey Buy Russian Missile System. In: Defense News, March 8, 2019. Online available at https://www.defensenews.com/global/europe/2019/03/08/pentagon-warns-of-grave-consequences-should-turkey-buy-russian-missile-system/, last checked April 10, 2019.Search in Google Scholar

Morel, J.-F., & Cameron, A. (2010). The EU and defence capabilities. Charting the course. In: L. Simón (Ed.), European defence capabilities (pp. 2–4). London, UK (Occasional Paper): No Adaptability without Co-operation.Search in Google Scholar

NATO. (2019). NATO Member Countries. Online available at https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/nato_countries.htm, last checked April 15, 2019.Search in Google Scholar

Reinhart, C. M., & Rogoff, K. S. (2004). The modern history of exchange rate arrangements. A reinterpretation. Quarterly Journal of Economics, 69(1), 1–48.10.3386/w8963Search in Google Scholar

Reuters. (2019). Erdogan Says Turkey Can’t Quit S-400 Missile Deal with Russia. Thomson Reuters. Online available at https://www.reuters.com/article/us-turkey-russia/erdogan-says-turkey-cant-quit-s-400-missile-deal-with-russia-idUSKCN1QV2YI, last checked April 10, 2019.Search in Google Scholar

Salmon, T. (2006). The European union. Just an alliance or a military alliance? Journal of Strategic Studies, 29(5), 813–842.10.1080/01402390600900911Search in Google Scholar

Secades, S. (2011). Openness in the European defence market and company competitiveness. In A. J. K. Bailes & S. Depauw (Eds.), The EU defence market. Balancing effectiveness with responsibility (pp. 29–36). Conference Report. Brussels, Belgium.Search in Google Scholar

Simon, J. (2003). Hungary and NATO. Lanham, MD: Problems in Civil-Military Relations.Search in Google Scholar

Tetrais, B. (2004). The changing nature of military alliances. Washington Quarterly, 27(2), 135–150.10.1162/016366004773097759Search in Google Scholar

The World Bank. (2019). Population Data. All Countries and Economies. Online available at https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/sp.pop.totl, last checked April 15, 2019.Search in Google Scholar

Thiem, A. (2011). Conditions of intergovernmental armaments cooperation in Western Europe, 1996–2006. European Political Science Review, 3(1), 1–33.10.1017/S1755773910000251Search in Google Scholar

Treacher, A. (2004). From civilian power to military actor. The EU’s resistible transformation. European Foreign Affairs Review, 9(1), 49–66.10.54648/EERR2004003Search in Google Scholar

U.S. Department of Defense – Defense Manpower Data Center. (2019). DoD Personnel, Workforce Reports & Publications. Online available at https://www.dmdc.osd.mil/appj/dwp/dwp_reports.jsp, last checked April 15, 2019.Search in Google Scholar

Vucetic, S., & Duarte, É. (2015). New fighter aircraft acquisitions in Brazil and India. Why not buy American? Politics and Policy, 43(3), 401–425.10.1111/polp.12119Search in Google Scholar

Vucetic, S., & Tago, A. (2015). Why buy American? The international politics of fighter jet transfers. Canadian Journal of Political Science, 48(1), 101–124.10.1017/S0008423914001103Search in Google Scholar

Wedin, L. (2008). The EU as a military strategic actor. In K. Engelbrekt & J. Hallenberg (Eds.), The European Union and Strategy. An Emerging Actor (pp. 40–55). New York, NY.Search in Google Scholar

Zandee, D. (2017). European preference, strategic autonomy and European defence fund. A strategic point of view. In V. Camporini, K. Hartley, J.-P. Maulny, & D. Zandee (Eds.): European Preference, Strategic Autonomy and the European Defence Fund (Report), p. 10–15.Search in Google Scholar

Published Online: 2019-11-23

© 2019 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston

Downloaded on 30.9.2025 from https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.1515/peps-2019-0030/html?lang=en
Scroll to top button