Foreign Military Financing (FMF)

Bureau of Political-Military Affairs
Washington, DC

($ in thousands)

FMF is administered by the Office of Policy Plans and Analysis.

Foreign Military Financing (FMF) is a critical foreign policy tool for promoting U.S. interests around the world by ensuring that coalition partners and friendly foreign governments are equipped and trained to work toward common security goals and share burdens in joint missions. In that regard, FMF is vital to supporting U.S. coalition partners in the war on terrorism. FMF provides grants for the acquisition of U.S. defense equipment, services and training, which promotes U.S. national security by contributing to regional and global stability, strengthening military support for democratically-elected governments, and containing transnational threats including terrorism and trafficking in narcotics, weapons, and persons. These grants enable key allies and friends to improve their defense capabilities and foster closer military relationships between the U.S. and recipient nations. Increased military capabilities build and strengthen multilateral coalitions with the U.S. and enable friends and allies to be increasingly interoperable with regional, U.S., and NATO forces. By increasing demand for U.S. systems, FMF also contributes to a strong U.S. defense industrial base, an important element of U.S. national defense strategy that reduces cost for Department of Defense acquisitions and secures more jobs for American workers.

The objectives of U.S. Foreign Military Financing are to:

• Improve the military capabilities of key friendly countries to contribute to international crisis response operations, including peacekeeping and humanitarian crises. 
  
  
• Promote bilateral, regional and multilateral coalition efforts, notably in the global war on terrorism.
  
  
• Maintain support for democratically-elected governments that share values similar to the United States for democracy, human rights, and regional stability. 
  
  
• Enhance rationalization, standardization, and interoperability of military forces of friendly countries and allies. 
  
  
• Assist the militaries of friendly countries and allies to procure U.S. defense articles and services that strengthen legitimate self-defense capabilities and security needs. 
  
  
• Enhance rationalization, standardization, and interoperability of military forces of friendly countries and allies. 
  
  
• Support the U.S. industrial base by promoting the export of U.S. defense-related goods and services.
  

FMF will also support Department of Defense costs for the administration of global grant military assistance programs. [Source: FY 2007 Congressional Budget Justification.]