Missile technology restrictions limit exports of UAV, but demand may drive rule change
A senior US defence export official has responded sceptically to a new request announced last week by South Korea to purchase the Northrop Grumman RQ-4 Global Hawk. But he acknowledges that such growing interest in the high-altitude, long-endurance unmanned air vehicle could drive export policy changes.
Lt Gen Jeffrey Kohler, commander of the Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA), says in an interview that RQ-4 exports are unlikely due to the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), a 34-nation non-proliferation pact restricting sales of space launchers, cruise missiles and UAVs that could be used to deliver weapons of mass destruction (WMD). The MTCR guidelines qualify the RQ-4 a “Category 1” weapon system, which means any export request must be reviewed with a “strong presumption of denial”. The Category 1 criteria include any UAV that can carry a 500kg (1,100lb) payload more than 550km (300nm).
“The missile technology control regime is still a living, breathing document,” says Kohler. “There are no changes in US policy on that. We’re still a strong backer of the MTCR.” South Korea submitted the request last month during a bilateral meeting with US officials in Hawaii, says Kohler. The subject is expected to be raised again in October during the next security consultative meeting.
South Korea is eying the Global Hawk for its long-term acquisition plans, and may seek to initiate the US review process of the MTCR policy. Kohler says any change in US policy over MTCR must be slow and methodical, as the agreement is seen as a protection against the proliferation of long-range WMDs.
The MTCR’s core guidelines, adopted in 1987, have been criticised for loopholes that allow the export of conversion kits that can transform manned aircraft into unmanned WMD bombers. Some cruise missiles and UAVs that fall slightly under the MTCR performance guidelines, such as the Russian-Indian Brahmos supersonic cruise missile, can be legally exported.
“I think it might be time to look at a process that makes a better distinction between systems that could deliver WMD and systems purely designed for reconnaissance. But there’s some fine lines there that have to be looked at,” says Kohler. He adds: “I don’t see anything dramatic [changing] in the near term. If anything we want to strengthen [the MTCR], rather than lessen the requirements.”
STEPHEN TRIMBLE / WASHINGTON DC
Source: Flight International
