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Small arms is a term used by military armed forces of the world to denote infantry weapons an individual soldier may carry. The description is usually limited to revolvers, pistols, carbines, rifles, shotguns, submachine guns, assault rifles, squad automatic weapons, and general-purpose machine guns. Also, grenade launchers and certain hand-held antitank weapons may be considered small arms, depending on the armed force.
Small arms do not include infantry support weapons or crew-served weapons such as heavy machine guns (typically .50 caliber or 12.7 mm) or mortars. In the United States any modern firearm (post-1898) that utilizes a projectile (bullet) greater than 1/2 inch in diameter is legally defined as a "destructive device", while any firearm having a bore diameter of .50 caliber or less is normally considered a "small arm". The so-called "1/2 inch rule" does not apply to shotguns, sporting cartridge big-bore rifles (such as rifles chambered in .600 Nitro Express), muzzleloading black-powder weapons, whether original antiques (pre-1898), or modern replicas, many of which have bore diameters larger than .50 caliber.
There is, however, a term which encompasses both, (Small Arms and Light Weapons) SALW, that is used by some organizations working to limit arms proliferation. For example, much of the United Nations action to tackle illegal arms proliferation is raised in the UN Conference on the Illicit Trade in Small Arms.
Global distribution of small arms
It is estimated that there are in total 875 million small arms distributed amongst civilians, law enforcement agencies and armed forces, globally. 650 million of these firearms, or 75 per cent, are held by civilians worldwide. US civilians alone account for 270 million of this total. A further 200 million are controlled by state military forces. Law enforcement agencies have some 26 million small arms. Non-state armed groups have about 1.4 million firearms. Finally, gang members hold between 2 and 10 million small arms. Together, the small arms arsenals of non-state armed groups and gangs account for, at most, 1.4 per cent of the global total.
References
- Ankony, Robert C., "The Financial Assessment of Military Small Arms," Small Arms Review, Apr. 2000, 53--59.
- Marchant-Smith & Haslam, p.169.
- Ankony, Robert C., "The Financial Assessment of Military Small Arms," Small Arms Review, Apr. 2000, 53--59.
- Title 18 US Code 921
- Conventional arms
- UN Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW) Conference
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Other reading
- Dikshif, P. Proliferation of Small Arms and Minor Weapons, Strategic Analysis, Vol. 17(2) May 1994.
- Gould, C. and Lamb, G., Hide & Seek: Taking Account of Small Arms in Southern Africa, Institute for Security Studies, Pretoria, 2004.
- Marchant-Smith, C.J., & Haslam, P.R., Small Arms & Cannons, Brassey's Battlefield Weapons Systems & Technology, Volume V, Brassey's Publishers, London, 1982.
See also
External links
- Ankony, Robert C., "The US .45 Model 50 and 55 Reising Submachine Gun and Model 60 Semiautomatic Rifle," Small Arms Review, Jul. 2008, 64-67.
- Small Arms Survey
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