ABSTRACT
Countries have several reasons for developing and producing their own arms. Perhaps the strongest of these is the security-driven imperative for self-sufficiency, or autarky, in arms procurement. During the Cold War, many second-tier arms producers favoured self-sufficiency and hedged against arms-export bans. South Africa initiated indigenous production in direct response to UN-imposed arms embargoes in 1963 and 1977. Taiwan's growing diplomatic isolation from the late 1970s, and its subsequent fears about being cut off from its principal overseas arms suppliers, was a prime motivation for establishing an indigenous arms-producing capability. Indonesia established an aviation industry as an indicator of its intentions to become a modern industrialised nation and a power to be reckoned with in Southeast Asia. Even more technologically advanced countries such as Japan, Sweden and Israel have found it increasingly difficult to keep pace with the rising economic and technological demands of state-of-the-art armaments production.
