The United States government first recognized the usefulness of foreign aid as a tool of diplomacy in World War II. It was believed that it would promote liberal capitalist models of development in other countries and that it would enhance national security.[1]

The United States is the largest contributor of military aid to foreign countries in the world, with its Department of Defense providing funding and/or American military hardware aid to over 150 countries annually for defense purposes.

Military funding programs

There are three main programs where military funding is allocated:

  1. Foreign military financing provides grants for the acquisition of U.S. defense equipment, services, and training. These grants enable friends and allies to improve their defense capabilities.[2] FMF is allowed under the Arms Export Control Act (AECA), which as amended [22 U.S.C. 2751, et. seq.], authorizes the President to finance procurement of defense articles and services for foreign countries and international organizations.[3] The goals of FMF are:
    • Promoting national security by contributing to regional and global stability
    • Strengthening military support for democratically elected governments and containing transnational threats, including terrorism and trafficking in narcotics, weapons, and persons
    • Fostering closer military relationships between the U.S. and recipient nations
  2. Peacekeeping Operations (PKO) provide voluntary support for international peacekeeping activities. These funds support non-U.N. operations and training in response to a nation’s crisis.[4] The goals of PKO are:
    • Promoting increased involvement of regional organizations in conflict resolution
    • Helping leverage support for multinational efforts in the event of a nation's crisis
  3. The International Military Education and Training program (IMET) offers military training on a grant basis to foreign military officials.[5] The goals of IMET are:
    • Encouraging effective defense relationships
    • Promoting interoperability with U.S. and coalition forces
    • Exposing foreign civilian and military officials to democratic values, military professionalism, and international norms of human rights

Some examples of this would include the United States' efforts in Colombia and South Korea. Military aid has been successful in stopping insurgency, providing stability, and ending conflicts within the region. In South Korea, US military aid has been beneficial for the maintenance of national security, economic and social development, and civilization as a whole.[6]

In many other cases, military aid has laid the groundwork for other forms of aid. This aid includes building schools to promote education, providing clean drinking water, and further stabilizing food production. Without military aid, this development would have been impossible.

Criticisms

Particular targets of criticism include

  • Funds appropriated to the State Department and Defense Department represent the vast majority of unclassified military aid and assistance. The public does not have any way of tracking classified programs administered by the U.S. intelligence community.[7]
  • Foreign aid often aids the giver, not the recipient.
  • Corruption is a major problem. Funds often go directly to leaders who may not share the aid with citizens.
  • The United States gives the same amount of money to its top five aid recipients as they give to the rest of the world.[8]
  • Military aid went to Latin American dictatorships in the second half of the 20th century.
  • Generally, increasing levels of US military aid significantly reduces cooperative foreign policy behavior with the United States [9]

Table

The following table shows which countries does the United States provide military aid and/or assistance, per USAID.[10]

Countries by U.S. Military Aid
Country/Region2022
 Afghanistan No
 Albania Yes
 Algeria Yes
 Angola Yes
 Antigua and Barbuda Yes
 Argentina Yes
 Armenia Yes
 Azerbaijan Yes
 Bahamas Yes
 Bahrain Yes
 Bangladesh Yes
 Barbados Yes
 Belarus No
 Belize Yes
 Benin Yes
 Bhutan No
 Bolivia No
 Bosnia and Herzegovina Yes
 Botswana Yes
 Brazil Yes
 Bulgaria Yes
 Burkina Faso No
 Burundi No
 Cambodia No
 Cameroon Unknown or unclear
 Cape Verde Yes
 Central African Republic No
 Chad Yes
 Chile Yes
 China No
 Colombia Yes
 Comoros Yes
 Congo Yes
 Costa Rica Yes
 Croatia Yes
 Cuba No
 Cyprus Yes
 Czech Republic Yes
 Democratic Republic of the Congo Yes
 Djibouti Yes
 Dominica Yes
 Dominican Republic Yes
 East Timor Yes
 Ecuador Yes
 Egypt Yes
 El Salvador Yes
 Equatorial Guinea Yes
 Eritrea No
 Estonia Yes
 Eswatini Yes
 Ethiopia Yes
 Fiji Yes
 Gabon Yes
 Gambia Yes
 Georgia Yes
 Germany Yes
 Ghana Yes
 Greece Yes
 Grenada Yes
 Guatemala Yes
 Guinea No
 Guinea-Bissau Yes
 Guyana Yes
 Haiti Yes
 Honduras Yes
 Hungary Yes
 India Yes
 Indonesia Yes
 Iran No
 Iraq Yes
 Israel Yes
 Ivory Coast Yes
 Jamaica Yes
 Jordan Yes
 Kazakhstan Yes
 Kenya Yes
 Kosovo Yes
 Kyrgyzstan Yes
 Laos Yes
 Latvia Yes
 Lebanon Yes
 Lesotho Yes
 Liberia Yes
 Libya No
 Lithuania Yes
 Madagascar Yes
 Malawi Yes
 Malaysia Yes
 Maldives Yes
 Mali No
 Malta Yes
 Mauritania Yes
 Mauritius Yes
 Mexico Yes
 Moldova Yes
 Mongolia Yes
 Montenegro Yes
 Morocco Yes
 Mozambique Yes
 Myanmar No
 Namibia Yes
   Nepal Yes
 Nicaragua No
 Niger Yes
 Nigeria Yes
 North Korea No
 North Macedonia Yes
 Oman Yes
 Pakistan Unknown or unclear
 Palestine No
 Panama Yes
 Papua New Guinea Yes
 Paraguay Yes
 Peru Yes
 Philippines Yes
 Poland Yes
 Romania Yes
 Russia No
 Rwanda Yes
 Saint Kitts and Nevis Unknown or unclear
 Saint Lucia Yes
 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Yes
 São Tomé and Principe Yes
 Senegal Yes
 Serbia Yes
 Seychelles Yes
 Sierra Leone Yes
 Slovakia Yes
 Slovenia Yes
 Solomon Islands No
 Somalia Yes
 South Africa Yes
 South Sudan Yes
 Sri Lanka Yes
 Sudan No
 Suriname Yes
 Syria No
 Taiwan Yes
 Tajikistan Yes
 Tanzania Yes
 Thailand Yes
 Togo Yes
 Tonga Yes
 Trinidad and Tobago Yes
 Tunisia Yes
 Turkey Yes
 Turkmenistan Yes
 Uganda Yes
 Ukraine Yes
 Uruguay Yes
 Uzbekistan Yes
 Vanuatu Yes
 Venezuela No
 Vietnam Yes
 Western Sahara No
 Yemen No
 Zambia Yes
 Zimbabwe No

See also

References

  1. Foreign Aid. Retrieved 2011-02-24.
  2. Foreign Military Financing Account Summary. Retrieved 2011-03-01.
  3. "Foreign Military Financing (FMF) | The Official Home of the Defense Security Cooperation Agency". www.dsca.mil. Retrieved 2018-12-28.
  4. Foreign Aid: An Introductory Overview of U.S. Programs and Policy (PDF). Retrieved 2011-03-01.
  5. IMET Assessment Project 2007-2008. Retrieved 2011-03-01.
  6. Choi, Tae Young (1989). "Effect Analysis of U.S. Military Aid to the Republic of Korea" (PDF). Naval Postgraduate School Monterey, California. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 24, 2020.
  7. A Citizen's Guide to Understanding U.S. Foreign Military Aid. Retrieved 2011-03-01.
  8. Noah GrantJust the Facts: Foreign Aid vs. Military Spending. Retrieved 2011-02-24.
  9. Sullivan, Patricia; Tessman, Brock; Li, Xiaojun (2011). "US Military Aid and Recipient State Cooperation". Foreign Policy Analysis. 7 (3): 275–294. doi:10.1111/j.1743-8594.2011.00138.x.
  10. https://www.foreignassistance.gov
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