Defense Offset and Cases of Corruption : Applying Performance Management To Test Prevention Effectiveness In Europe

According to a recent report from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), 40 percent of all corruption in international transactions occur in the arms trade (SIPRI Yearbook 2010, p. 1), moreover the Trade Promotion Coordinating Committee of the US Department of Commerce claimed in a March 2000 report that the defense sector was responsible for more than 50 percent of all bribery allegations between 1994 and 1999 (Magahy et al. 2010, p. 14). Key reasons for this concentration in arms trade corruption include the high value and therefore the importance of single trades for individual countries and defense suppliers. Especially considering the increasing complexity of these security relevant transactions, that make it harder and harder for public managers to control and communicate information to superior authorities and the public.