Germany is in the top five of weapons sellers, behind the United States and Russia but with sales volumes more comparable to those of China and France.
The government granted permission for arms sales valued at €6.85 billion in 2016. Last year, Germany accounted for around 5.6 percent of the world's weapons exports, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. 46.4 percent of permissions for German arms sales were for fellow NATO countries.
The trade publication Jane's Defense estimates that the Middle East and North Africa could account for 40 percent of German arms exports by 2018, which is comparable with those two regions' share in the global market.
Germany has provided weapons to a number of countries with dubious human-rights records, including both Saudi Arabia and Qatar. German arms sales to Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, both countries accused of commonly using torture, have also been criticized.
A submarine deal with Israel worth an estimated €1.5 billion came under fire earlier this year following allegations of corruption in Israel. In the past, critics have noted that German submarines sent to Israel could be modified to carry nuclear missiles.
North Korea's pursuit of nuclear weapons and missiles has raised the threat of a full-blown conflict on the Korean Peninsula. South Korea has also been acquiring German weapons. The German cruise missile Taurus KEPD-350 has a lot of demand in South Korea. The nearly 1,000-kilogram high-tech weapon made by an German firm, Taurus Systems, has a range of almost 500 kilometers. It has been specifically designed to penetrate highly capable air defense systems in low-altitude flight. The weapon is capable of both hitting deep underground bunkers as well as destroying large surface areas. The company set up an office in Seoul in 2014. In October 2016, 177 cruise missiles were handed over by the firm to the South Koreans. The delivery of 90 more has already been decided.
But cruise missiles were only a part of the armaments bought by South Korea last year. In the first half of 2016, South Korean purchases of German military gear amounted to over 200 million euros, according to German government data. The sales encompass a broad spectrum of weapons systems, including, but not limited to, submarine parts, combat ships, missiles, missile defense systems, rocket parts, components for combat tanks and armored howitzers. This meant that in the first half of 2016, South Korea was the fourth largest buyer of weapons made in Germany. In fact, South Korea has regularly figured among the top five destination countries of German armaments over the past several decades.
The government granted permission for arms sales valued at €6.85 billion in 2016. Last year, Germany accounted for around 5.6 percent of the world's weapons exports, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. 46.4 percent of permissions for German arms sales were for fellow NATO countries.
The trade publication Jane's Defense estimates that the Middle East and North Africa could account for 40 percent of German arms exports by 2018, which is comparable with those two regions' share in the global market.
Germany has provided weapons to a number of countries with dubious human-rights records, including both Saudi Arabia and Qatar. German arms sales to Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, both countries accused of commonly using torture, have also been criticized.
A submarine deal with Israel worth an estimated €1.5 billion came under fire earlier this year following allegations of corruption in Israel. In the past, critics have noted that German submarines sent to Israel could be modified to carry nuclear missiles.
North Korea's pursuit of nuclear weapons and missiles has raised the threat of a full-blown conflict on the Korean Peninsula. South Korea has also been acquiring German weapons. The German cruise missile Taurus KEPD-350 has a lot of demand in South Korea. The nearly 1,000-kilogram high-tech weapon made by an German firm, Taurus Systems, has a range of almost 500 kilometers. It has been specifically designed to penetrate highly capable air defense systems in low-altitude flight. The weapon is capable of both hitting deep underground bunkers as well as destroying large surface areas. The company set up an office in Seoul in 2014. In October 2016, 177 cruise missiles were handed over by the firm to the South Koreans. The delivery of 90 more has already been decided.
But cruise missiles were only a part of the armaments bought by South Korea last year. In the first half of 2016, South Korean purchases of German military gear amounted to over 200 million euros, according to German government data. The sales encompass a broad spectrum of weapons systems, including, but not limited to, submarine parts, combat ships, missiles, missile defense systems, rocket parts, components for combat tanks and armored howitzers. This meant that in the first half of 2016, South Korea was the fourth largest buyer of weapons made in Germany. In fact, South Korea has regularly figured among the top five destination countries of German armaments over the past several decades.
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