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United States Foreign Military Financing

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The United States Foreign Military Financing (FMF) program provides grants and loans to friendly foreign governments to fund the purchase of American weapons, defense equipment, services and training. The program was established through the 1976 Arms Export Control Act and is overseen by the Office of Security Assistance within the Bureau of Political-Military Affairs (previously the Office of Policy Plans and Analysis) of the United States Department of State and executed by the Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) of the United States Department of Defense.[1][2][3] The program's stated aims are to promote U.S. interests by "ensuring coalition partners and friendly partner governments are equipped and trained to pursue common security objectives by contributing to regional and global stability, strengthening military support for democratically-elected governments, fighting the War on Terror, and containing other transnational threats including trafficking in narcotics, weapons and persons."[2][4][5][6]

FMF funds eligible governments to purchase U.S. defense articles, services and training through the government-to-government the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program and purchases made through the Direct Commercial Contracts (DCC) program, which oversees sales between foreign governments and private U.S. companies.[7] FMF does not provide cash grants to other countries; it generally pays for sales of specific goods or services through FMS or DCS.[8][9][10][11]

In 2020, the DSCA reported sales of $50.8 billion under the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program (an increase of 51% from five years earlier) and $124.3 billion in sales under the Direct Commercial Contracts (DCC) program.[12]

Security Assistance Organizations (SAOs) and military personnel in U.S. embassies play a key role in managing FMF within recipient countries. Some FMF pays for SAO salaries and operational costs. The United States Congress appropriates funds for FMF through the annual Foreign Operations Appropriations Act.

Allocation of Foreign Military Financing

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Middle East and North Africa

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Israel is the largest recipient of Title 22 security assistance under the FMF program.[13] In 2016, the governments of United States and Israel signed their third ten-year MoU, covering 2019 to 2028, for the United States government to annually provide $3.3 billion in FMF.[14][15][16][17][18] Since 2009, Israel has been provided with $3.4 billion for missile defense, including $1.3 billion for Iron Dome since 2011 and access to purchase other U.S. military equipment, including 50 Lockheed Martin F-35.[19][20][21] Annual FMF grants represent approximately 16% of the 2021 Israeli defense budget.[19] In 2021, the Security Cabinet of Israel allocated $9 billion in future FMF funds to finance the purchase of 12 Sikorsky CH-53K helicopters (with an option to procure six more) and additional F-35 aircraft.[19][22][23] In August 2022, Boeing Defense, Space & Security and the Israeli government signed a contract for four Boeing KC-46A multirole tanker aircraft and "associated maintenance, logistics, and training" for $927 million.[15] Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz thanked the Department of Defense for approving the deal, which included an "expedited implementation of U.S. FMF."[24]

Other countries in the Middle East and North Africa were among the other major recipients of FMF funds, including Jordan, Egypt, and Pakistan.[25][26] The United States has provided aid to Jordan since the late 1960s. In 2022, the United States provided Jordan with $425 million in State Department Foreign Military Financing funds as part of its bilateral aid program.[27] Egypt receives $1.3 billion in annual FMF, accounting for 80 percent of its military procurement budget. Since the 1980s, over $40 billion in FMF funds have been used to acquire more than 1,100 M1A1 Abrams tanks, 224 F-16 fighter aircraft, 10 Boeing AH-64 Apache helicopters, thousands of Humvees, FIM-92 Stinger MANPADS, and AGM-114 Hellfire and Harpoon missiles.[28][29][30] Pakistan has been one of the largest recipients of US aid in the past, with the US providing the country more than £30 billion in direct aid since 1948.[31] In 2018, the Trump administration indefinitely froze all security aid to Pakistan over terror record.[32][33]

East Asia and Asia Pacific

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In September 2023, the Biden administration notified Congress that it was withholding $85 million designated for U.S. security assistance from Egypt due to its detention of political prisoners and human rights abuses and transferring $55 million to Taiwan and $30 million to Lebanon in FMF.[34][35][36] In 2022, Congress authorized but did not appropriate $2 billion in annual FMF to Taiwan.[37][38][39] The 2023 NDAA instead required that security assistance to Taiwan be provided through loans payable in 12-years.[37][40]

In October 2022, the Philippines was granted $100 million in FMF that according to U.S. ambassador to the Philippines MaryKay Carlson "could be used to 'offset' its decision to scrap a $227 million deal with Russia" and buy Boeing CH-47 Chinook helicopters from the United States instead of Mil Mi-17.[41][42][43]

Ukraine and Europe

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Since the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, the U.S. government has provided $2.6 billion in FMF to European allies and partners.[44][45] The U.S. Congress has appropriated $4.65 billion across two aid packages for Ukraine and "countries impacted by the situation in Ukraine."[46] FMF funds were used to refit and transfer four former United States Coast Guard Island-class patrol boats since 2018.[46] In September 2022, Congress approved $288.6 million in FMF for Poland to "build the capacity to deter and defend against the increased threat from Russia."[47]

In May 2024, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced a $2 billion aid package for Ukraine to establish a Ukraine Defense Enterprise Program.[48] The package is intended to help Ukraine grow its indigenous defense industrial base and move away from Soviet-era weaponry.[48]

South America

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In April 2024, the U.S. embassy in Argentina announced that Argentina would receive $40 million in FMF to fund the purchase of 24 F-16 aircraft from the Royal Danish Air Force.[49]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Foreign Military Financing (FMF)". U.S. Department of State. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  2. ^ a b "Security Assistance Team". U.S. Department of State. January 24, 2007. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  3. ^ "Foreign Military Financing (FMF)". Defense Security Cooperation Agency. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  4. ^ "About Us - Office of Security Assistance". U.S. Department of State. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  5. ^ Axelrod, Matthew Craig (April 2011). "Aid as Leverage? Understanding the U.S.-Egypt Military Relationship" (PDF). The Lauder Institute, University of Pennsylvania. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  6. ^ Tarnoff, Curt; Lawson, Marian L. (January 29, 2016). "Foreign Aid: An Introduction to U.S. Programs and Policy" (PDF). Congressional Research Service. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  7. ^ "Guidelines for Foreign Military Financing of Direct Commercial Contracts" (PDF). Defense Security Cooperation Agency. March 2017. Retrieved May 17, 2024.
  8. ^ "Guidelines for Foreign Military Financing of Direct Commercial Contracts" (PDF). Defense Security Cooperation Agency. March 2017. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  9. ^ "Congressional Budget Justification - Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs" (PDF). United States Agency for International Development. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  10. ^ Morgenstern, Emily M.; Brown, Nick M. (January 10, 2022). "Foreign Assistance: An Introduction to U.S. Programs and Policy". Congressional Research Service. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  11. ^ Omelicheva, Mariya; Carter, Brittnee; Campbell, Luke B. (2017). "Military Aid and Human Rights: Assessing the Impact of U.S. Security Assistance Programs". Political Science Quarterly. 132 (1): 119–144. doi:10.1002/polq.12575. ISSN 0032-3195. JSTOR 45175796.
  12. ^ Inside Government Contracts, Covington. "Covington Guide to Foreign Military Sales and Financing" (PDF). Inside Government Contracts. Retrieved November 11, 2023.
  13. ^ Clarke, Duncan L. (1997). "US Security Assistance to Egypt and Israel: Politically Untouchable?". Middle East Journal. 51 (2): 200–214. ISSN 0026-3141. JSTOR 4329053.
  14. ^ "FACT SHEET: Memorandum of Understanding Reached with Israel". whitehouse.gov. September 14, 2016. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  15. ^ a b Sharp, Jeremy M. (March 1, 2023). "U.S. Foreign Aid to Israel" (PDF). Congressional Research Service.
  16. ^ Masters, Jonathan; Merrow, Will (April 11, 2024). "U.S. Aid to Israel in Four Charts". Council on Foreign Relations. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  17. ^ Yousif, Elias; Stohl, Rachel (October 13, 2023). "In Shadow of War, a Snapshot of US Military Assistance to Israel • Stimson Center". Stimson Center. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  18. ^ Ruebner, Josh; Booker, Salih; Hussain, Zaha (May 12, 2021). "Bringing Assistance to Israel in Line With Rights and U.S. Laws". Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  19. ^ a b c "U.S. Security Cooperation with Israel Fact Sheet". U.S. Department of State. October 19, 2023. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  20. ^ Shapir, Yiftah S. (January 2011). "The F-35 Deal: An Enlightened Purchase?" (PDF). Strategic Assessment. 13 (4): 32.
  21. ^ "Israel – F-35 Joint Strike Fighter Aircraft" (PDF). Defense Security Cooperation Agency. September 29, 2008. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 16, 2013. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  22. ^ "Israel to purchase CH-53K King Stallion". Naval Air Systems Command. January 4, 2022. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  23. ^ "Israel wants its CH-53Ks as soon as possible". Vertical Mag. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  24. ^ Frantzman, Seth (September 1, 2022). "Israel, Boeing agree to $927M deal for four KC-46A tankers". Defense News. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  25. ^ "Congressional Budget Justifications - Foreign Operations Fiscal Year 2008" (PDF). U.S. Department of State. February 14, 2007.
  26. ^ "FY 2018 Department of State Agency Financial Report: Section I: Management's Discussion and Analysis". U.S. Department of State. November 15, 2018. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  27. ^ The International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, ed. (January 17, 2024). "Defense and Security". www.trade.gov. Retrieved September 18, 2024.
  28. ^ Schenker, David (September 4, 2013). "Inside the Complex World of U.S. Military Assistance to Egypt". The Washington Institute. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  29. ^ Thompson, Nick (November 11, 2015). "Seventy-five percent of U.S. foreign military financing goes to two countries | CNN Politics". CNN. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  30. ^ Clarke, Duncan L. (1997). "US Security Assistance to Egypt and Israel: Politically Untouchable?". Middle East Journal. 51 (2): 200–214. ISSN 0026-3141. JSTOR 4329053.
  31. ^ "Sixty years of US aid to Pakistan: Get the data - Pakistan | ReliefWeb". reliefweb.int. July 16, 2011. Retrieved September 18, 2024.
  32. ^ "Trump admin cancels $300M aid to Pakistan over terror record". NBC News. September 2, 2018. Retrieved September 18, 2024.
  33. ^ Iqbal, Anwar (April 28, 2023). "Pakistan urges US to restore military financing, sales". DAWN.COM. Retrieved September 18, 2024.
  34. ^ DeYoung, Karen (September 14, 2023). "U.S. cuts military aid to Egypt, sends money instead to Taiwan". The Washington Post. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  35. ^ Harris, Bryant (June 22, 2023). "Taiwan military aid granted by once-reluctant appropriators". Defense News. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  36. ^ Zengerle, Patricia (August 30, 2023). "Biden approves military aid to Taiwan under program normally used for sovereign states". Reuters. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  37. ^ a b Harris, Bryant (December 21, 2022). "Congress forgoes $2 billion Taiwan security grants in favor of loans". Defense News. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  38. ^ Harris, Bryant (August 25, 2022). "Taiwan is buying US weapons, but Washington isn't delivering them". Defense News. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  39. ^ Walker, Dustin; Eric, Sayers (June 14, 2023). "How Congress Can Help Taiwan Under the New Budget Deal". American Enterprise Institute - AEI. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  40. ^ Campbell, Caitlin (May 7, 2024). "Taiwan: Defense and Military Issues". Congressional Research Service. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  41. ^ "U.S. grants Philippines $100 million in foreign military financing". Reuters. October 14, 2022. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  42. ^ Lum, Thomas; Dolven, Ben; Arabia, Christina L. "The Philippines: Background and U.S. Relations". Congressional Research Service. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  43. ^ "Philippines in talks to buy U.S. helicopters after dropping Russia deal". Reuters. August 15, 2022. Retrieved May 16, 2024.
  44. ^ Lewis, Jessica (December 5, 2023). "The Future of Security Assistance in an Era of Strategic Competition - Remarks by Jessica Lewis, Assistant Secretary of Political-Military Affairs". U.S. Department of State. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  45. ^ Welt, Cory (February 15, 2024). "U.S. Security Assistance to Ukraine". Congressional Research Service.
  46. ^ a b "U.S. Security Cooperation with Ukraine". U.S. Department of State. May 10, 2024. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  47. ^ Poland, U. S. Mission (September 29, 2022). "United States Invests $288.6 Million in New Foreign Military Financing for Poland". U.S. Embassy & Consulate in Poland. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  48. ^ a b Harris, Bryant (May 16, 2024). "US announces $2 billion to help Ukraine make its own weapons". Defense News. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  49. ^ "United States Announces $40 Million in Foreign Military Financing for Argentina". U.S. Embassy in Argentina. April 18, 2024. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
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