KDI 경제정보센터

The U.S. economy is linked to the global economy through the supply chain and international trade, among other factors. Disruptions related to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and associated trade sanctions have contributed to shortages and boosted inflationary pressures in the U.S. and abroad. Similarly, conflict in the Middle East in the 1970s contributed to global inflationary pressures. Possible future conflicts will likely also have adverse economic impacts.
With that in mind, this blog post discusses some relevant facts about the arms trade, which ties nations to each other through security interests. Depending on their nature, such linkages may exacerbate or help to resolve international conflicts. In the following analysis, we describe the pattern of international trade in arms and comment on how arms trade linkages may have a bearing on the Russia-Ukraine war.