The purpose of this paper is to identify whether international transfers of military equipment are predominantly motivated by economic or political reasons. Eight countries were selected to be individually analyzed: the USA, Russia, France, the UK, Germany, Sweden, Switzerland and Japan. Although all of them consider both political and economic dimensions on their decisions to supply military equipment, the predominance of one of these dimensions - or the balance between them - can be identified for each country. Then they were separated into three groups: the USA, Sweden and Japan, which emphasize the political dimension; France, the UK and Russia, which give more importance to the economic dimension; and Switzerland and Germany, who which consider both dimensions equally important. The analysis concludes that the eight countries consider both dimensions in their decisions, even though in six cases there is a predominance of one of them. The reasons for the prioritization of the political or the economic aspects, however, are different for each country.
Although organic agriculture in Brazil targets mainly local consumers, there is growing demand for research related to commercializing this sector abroad. A study was done in Europe on the perception of entities related to this theme, specifically on Participatory Guarantee Systems (PGS), the feasibility of equivalence between the countries, and control procedures. An exploratory study was conducted through interviews with five organic certification bodies, two in Switzerland, three in Italy, and with a producer association in Italy. PGS is little known in Europe in general and it is suggested that it be better disseminated in the member countries. PGS has been evaluated positively for reducing certification costs and promoting benefits from a social aspect, but it can fail in organic compliance and in large scale production. There are significant differences that must be overcome in order to establish equivalence, such as the lack of homogeneity among European countries on control procedures, the existence of PGS in Brazilian legislation, lack of wild crop products in Europe, different conversion periods, and the requirement of a higher number of inspections in Brazil. Equivalence is seen as beneficial to both Europe and Brazil, and it would therefore be appropriate to promote its viability. The Brazilian law on organic agriculture is taken as very restrictive and complex. ; Although organic agriculture in Brazil targets mainly local consumers, there is growing demand for research related to commercializing this sector abroad. A study was done in Europe on the perception of entities related to this theme, specifically on Participatory Guarantee Systems (PGS), the feasibility of equivalence between the countries, and control procedures. An exploratory study was conducted through interviews with five organic certification bodies, two in Switzerland, three in Italy, and with a producer association in Italy. PGS is little known in Europe in general and it is suggested that it be better disseminated in the member countries. PGS has been evaluated positively for reducing certification costs and promoting benefits from a social aspect, but it can fail in organic compliance and in large scale production. There are significant differences that must be overcome in order to establish equivalence, such as the lack of homogeneity among European countries on control procedures, the existence of PGS in Brazilian legislation, lack of wild crop products in Europe, different conversion periods, and the requirement of a higher number of inspections in Brazil. Equivalence is seen as beneficial to both Europe and Brazil, and it would therefore be appropriate to promote its viability. The Brazilian law on organic agriculture is taken as very restrictive and complex. ; Embora a agricultura orgânica no Brasil atinja principalmente aos consumidores locais, há uma crescente demanda por pesquisas relacionadas à comercialização com o exterior neste setor. Uma pesquisa foi realizada na Europa sobre a percepção de entidades relacionadas a este tema, especificamente sobre Sistemas Participativos de Garantia (SPG), a viabilidade da equivalência entre os países e os procedimentos de controle. Um estudo exploratório foi realizado através de entrevistas com cinco organismos de certificação orgânica, dois na Suíça, três na Itália e uma associação de produtores na Itália. O SPG é pouco conhecido na Europa em geral e é sugerido divulgar melhor nos países membros. O SPG foi avaliado positivamente para reduzir os custos de certificação e promover os benefícios de um aspecto social, mas pode falhar na conformidade orgânica e na produção em grande escala. Existem diferenças significativas para estabelecer equivalência, como a falta de homogeneidade entre os países europeus em procedimentos de controle, a existência de SPG na legislação brasileira, a falta de produtos do extrativismo vegetal na Europa, diferentes períodos de conversão e a exigência de um maior número de inspeções no Brasil. A equivalência foi considerada benéfica para ambos e seria apropriado fazer esforços para torná-la viável. A legislação brasileira sobre agricultura orgânica é considerada muito restritiva e complexa.
