armaments

Armaments are weapons and related equipment used by military and security forces for defense and warfare. The term encompasses the weapons themselves, munitions, and the platforms that carry or deploy them, such as firearms, artillery, missiles, armored vehicles, aircraft, and ships.

Major categories include small arms and light weapons (rifles, pistols, machine guns); artillery and artillery systems; armored vehicles and tanks; naval weapons and ships; air defense and air power systems; missiles and guided munitions; unmanned systems such as drones; and integrated weapon platforms and defense networks.

Armaments are produced by state arsenals and private defense manufacturers and are distributed through formal procurement channels, military sales, or illicit markets. Because many armaments are dual-use technologies with civilian applications, international and national controls regulate their transfer and export. Key regimes include the Arms Trade Treaty, export-control groups like the Missile Technology Control Regime, and nonproliferation frameworks that govern sensitive technologies, ammunition, and weapons components.

Arms control and disarmament efforts seek to reduce stockpiles, prevent illicit trafficking, and limit the spread of weapons to unstable actors. The existence and circulation of armaments influence security dynamics, conflict duration, and civilian harm, prompting ongoing debates about disarmament, defense modernization, and the ethics of weapon development. Technological trends emphasize precision weapons, smart munitions, and surveillance-enabled platforms, accompanied by concerns over proliferation and arms race dynamics.