To sustain or develop the required technologies and capabilities, the local defence related industries will have to increasingly rely on exports and joint for funding. Government will support the export initiatives of the defence related industries by permitting it to contract and honour obligations which have been duly approved. These governments will only buy from those countries which they are confident will support the systems over its full life-cycle. The life-cycle of a system could be as long as 50 years and many purchasing countries also require government guaranties. Departments of State dealing in foreign affairs therefore play a significant role in deciding where to buy and where to sell.
Armaments are high value and therefore expensive goods.
Sales often require specialised finance arrangements, soft loans or even free or subsidised supply out of existing defence stocks. Financing and contract finalisation may involve complex government to government initiatives and agreements. International joint ventures, investment in local industry, technology transfer, immaterial property rights and similar business activities require extensive involvement by both the purchasing and selling countries. Armaments are exclusively designed and manufactured to specific user requirements. The original user requirement is usually defined by the domestic defence force.