According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), a respected think tank based in Sweden, China has become the world’s fifth-largest arms exporter. Pakistan is the largest recipient of Chinese arms, accounting for 55 percent of Chinese arms exports.
“China replaced Britain in the list of the top five arms-dealing countries for the period between 2008 and 2012. According to SIPRI, the United States and Russia dominated the group, accounting for 30 percent and 26 percent of weapons exports.” Germany and France ranked third and fourth on the list of arms exporters.
China is also the world’s second largest arms importing country. The number of arms China imported from 2008 to 2012 accounted for 6 percent of the global total. The top arms importers between 2008 and 2012 were India, China, Pakistan, South Korea, and Singapore.
Source: Reuters Beijing and BBC Chinese, March 17 – 18, 2013
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/03/17/us-china-arms-exports-idUSBRE92G0L120130317
http://www.bbc.co.uk/zhongwen/simp/china/2013/03/130318_china_arms.shtml