ARMS PRODUCTION AND INTEGRATION OF SECURI TY POLICY IN WESTERN-EUROPE

The article focuses on the fundamental restructuring of the Western Eu ropean arms industry in the light of two sets of theories, neofunction alism and intergovernmental institutionalism. The structure of the arm s industry in Western Europe is changing rapidly as previously distinc t national industries are merging and developing multiple patterns of cooperation. At the same time the costs of development and production of new weapons systems have skyrocketed, while defence budgets have de creased. This process forces European states to cooperate in developme nt and procurement of new defence equipment. The article discusses the se trends and the struggle between the EC Commission and the member st ates about political control of the arms industry. It concludes that, for several reasons, in the foreseeable future the member states will probably prefer to keep control of the arms industry in a loose, and s trictly intergovernmental, organization. Thus the planned common marke t for defence equipment and the EC internal market will continue to be separated, and the influence of the Commission will be minimalized.