| Loren B. Thompson is a Senior Adviser at GPI, Chief Operating Officer of the non-profit Lexington Institute and Chief Executive Officer of Source Associates, a for-profit consultancy. Prior to holding his present positions, he was Deputy Director of the Security Studies Program at Georgetown University and taught graduate-level courses in strategy, technology and media affairs at Georgetown. He has also taught at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government. Mr. Thompson holds doctoral and masters degrees in government from Georgetown University and a bachelor of science degree in political science from Northeastern |
Issue Briefs
Beijing’s Blockade Of Taiwan Is The Latest Sign Washington Needs To Streamline Its Defense Trade With Allies (From Forbes)
Loren B. Thompson
August 05, 2022
The United States government maintains a complex system for controlling arms sales called International Traffic in Arms Regulations, or ITAR. It is designed to prevent military technology from falling into the hands of bad actors, but it impedes sending the same technology to friends–even when it is urgently needed. With Beijing now determined to match and surpass Washington in advanced technology, there is a need to compress the time required to secure approvals in military transactions with key allies. The U.S. should develop a fast-track mechanism for eliminating barriers and long waits when sharing arms technology or technical data with trusted partners, especially in Asia. I have written a commentary for Forbes here.
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