US clears record total for arms sales in FY17

Defense News: WASHINGTON — The U.S. State Department has set a new one-year record for clearing weapon sales, with $75.9 billion cleared by the department and announced by the Defense Security Cooperation Agency in fiscal 2017.

That total covers all announced cleared weapons packages from Oct. 1, 2016, through Sept. 12, 2017, leaving two more weeks for that number to increase before the end of the fiscal year.

The previous record for the Defense Security Cooperation Agency, or DSCA, sales announcements was $68.6 billion, set in fiscal 2012 following the approval of a series of massive weapons packages for Saudi Arabia. In comparison, in fiscal 2016, DSCA cleared $33.6 billion in potential weapon sales.

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