 Paying Them to Hate US: The Effect of US Military Aid on Anti-American Terrorism, 1968–2018Eugen Dimant, Tim Krieger and Daniel Meierrieks The Economic Journal, 2024, vol. 134, issue 663, 2772-2802 Abstract: How does anti-American terrorism in recipient countries respond to US military aid? Does aid protect United States interests abroad or does it have unintended consequences for US security? To answer these questions, we estimate the effect of US military aid on anti-American terrorism in recipient countries for a sample of 174 countries between 1968 and 2018. We find that higher levels of aid especially for military financing and education are associated with a higher likelihood of anti-American terrorism in aid-receiving countries. Examining potential transmission channels, we show that more US military aid correlates with lower military capacity and increases in corruption and exclusionary policies in recipient countries. Our findings are consistent with the argument that military aid aggravates local grievances, creating anti-American resentment and leading to anti-American terrorism. Indeed, we also provide tentative evidence that US military aid is associated with lower public opinion about the United States in recipient countries. Date: 2024 Downloads: (external link) Related works: Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:oup:econjl:v:134:y:2024:i:663:p:2772-2802. Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from Access Statistics for this article The Economic Journal is currently edited by Francesco Lippi More articles in The Economic Journal from Royal Economic Society Contact information at EDIRC. |
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