Military technology and US-Japan security relations : A study of three cases of military R&D collaboration, 1983-1998

Abstract: Since the end of the Cold War, the same clear threats do not exist, and the reduction of military spending has become a world-wide trend in the 1990s. Military technology, which used to be perceived as a crucial national security concern, is now subject to severe financial constraints and more strict assessment. Under these new circumstances, the dynamics of weapon development and the implications of military technology have also changed. R&D costs soared and investment in development of advanced weapon systems became more risky, both technologically and financially. The rapid advancement of technology broadens the interfaces between military and civilian technology. Such changes are likely to enhance international collaboration in military R&D and what this study calls 'commercialization of military technology'. This study deals with military R&D processes in a broad context which result in certain weapon development projects as an outcome of such changes.This study examines how and why international collaboration in military technology has changed after the Cold War, addressing the following questions. (1) Is military R&D increasingly carried out on the basis of inter-state cooperation? If so, why and how is it taking place? (2) How do the increasing importance and utilization of dual-use technology influence the development of weapon systems? (3) How does this new trend in military R&D (i.e., internationalization and commercialization) affect the existing arms dynamics which have been based on the national security concept? (4) What kinds of impact do the post-Cold War change in threat perceptions have on weapon development? (5) How do features of each military R&D programme differ in the creation of the projects and the process of R&D collaboration, considered in the broader context of the process? The study examines these questions by analysing three cases of military R&D collaboration between the United States and Japan: collaboration in SDI research, the FS-X/F-2 fighter support co-development project, and technological research collaboration in theater missile defence (TMD). A comparative analysis of these US-Japan collaboration projects illustrates middle- and long-term changes in military R&D trends before and after the Cold War. In addition, the cases will show how military R&D collaboration was influenced by other factors such as US-Japan economic and political relations and technological trends.