Finland granted permits totalling 139.3 million euros in March 2020 for the export of military vehicle parts to the United Arab Emirates. The deal accounts for almost all of Finland’s total arms exports last year.
The information was contained in the latest Finnish Arms Control Report produced by independent SaferGlobe, a Finnish think-tank.
The recipient of the parts was the UAE company Calidus, which used them in the manufacturing of military vehicles. Finnish authorities have no influence over where the company sells the vehicles once they’re assembled.
“Finland has given the UAE company free rein to export Finnish components as parts of its military products for decades,” SaferGlobe researcher Kari Paasonen said.
The permits issued by the government for the deal are noteworthy not only for the value, but also for the agreed duration. The export license for vehicle axles is valid until the end of 2039 and the license for gearboxes until the end of 2050.
Previously, permits issued between 2017 and 2020 have been valid for an average of only two years. Only one percent of export licenses are valid for more than ten years.
Finland suspended the granting of arms export licenses to the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia in 2018 due to the countries’ involvement in hostilities in Yemen.
The UAE announced its withdrawal from Yemen in 2019, but said in February 2020 it would continue air operations.
Civilian arms exports exceed military materials
According to the data provided by SaferGlobe, the total value of Finland’s arms exports in 2020 was 161 million euros, the lowest level since 2011 and a drop of about 20 percent compared to the previous year.
The decline was evident in both exports of military vehicles and other military products as well as civilian weapons.
However, despite the decrease, the value of Finnish arms exports in 2020 was still double the value when SaferGlobe began gathering data in 2002.
The think-tank also noted that the value of civilian arms exports exceeded the value of military materials for the first time in the 20 years SaferGlobe had been compiling statistics. Exports of civilian arms amounted to about 81 million euros while military materials totalled about 80 million euros.
Civilian arms are mainly exported for the purposes of hunting or shooting sports while military materials have been developed primarily for military use. In addition to weapons, vehicles and explosives, these also include security materials, production technology and software.
The SaferGlobe think-tank has collected export statistics from Finland’s Ministries of Defence and Foreign Affairs as well as from Customs.
However, 2020 marked the third consecutive year that the National Police Board was unable to provide SaferGlobe with export statistics, citing issues with the compiling of data.
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