International audienceThe role of defense in national innovation systems is a hot topic, because of the complexity of defense systems and the desire to get value-for-money from R&D investment, especially through the commercialization of defense-funded technology. In practice, external transfer has proved to be a difficult, labor-intensive process, which requires a strong commitment from both parties. Here, intellectual property rights (IPR) appear as a strong incentive for collaboration. Analyzing the lack of IPR culture in defense industries elucidates the difficulties and failures in spin-off attempts. We finally propose strategies leading to a market for defense-born technology

In the main arms-producing countries, Ministries of Defence are looking for alternative ways to acquire defence capabilities. Over the past two decades, several reform projects have been experimented to go beyond the model inherited from the Cold War, but they did not succeed in delivering expected results. One may wonder whether such defence acquisition systems correspond to their core mission: supplying boots on the ground with adequate capacities. The research agenda and reforms programmes are biased since they focus mainly on “how” to procure. While reforming existing mechanisms seems to fail or to deliver well below expectations, one may wonder in fact whether the true question should concern “why” and “what” to buy with regard to military needs but also the place that technology takes in conceiving defence capabilities.

In analysing capitalism, Karl Marx dealt little with issues of international relations and militarism - Friedrich Engels was in charge of these questions. But war has never been integrated in the Marxist diagram. However, Marx and Engels' writings contain essential remarks on international conflicts conceived as a consequence of the class war, on militarism's role in industrial development and on trade wars replacing armed conflicts. These ideas have later been developed by Marxist theorists, notably in pre-revolutionary Russia, with an insistence on the warlike character of capitalism at the stage of imperialism. The Marxist analysis of militarism was continued after the Second World War, accompanied by a controversy on the impact of military expenditure on the profit rate.War, Capitalism, Marx, Engels,

Technology has been playing a central role in defense spending or arms-producing countries since World War II. Although there has been no major threat or conflict since the 1990s, defense R&D absorbs a large share of military expenditures, as well as public R&D. This technology-centric paradigm results from uncertainties surrounding defense matters and the need to avoid strategic surprises. However, one can wonder whether such a paradigm is still adapted to today's defense needs. This is a trend strongly driven by the supply side: defense firms have developed a business model that cannot survive without launching new programs, hence a high level of defense R&D. This explains both an overinvestment in technology, resulting in the development of unaffordable technologies or unsustainable performance targets, and the technology-centric model that defense firms favor in side markets like security. KEY WORDSDefense, R&D, technology, security, procurement JEL H56, H57, O32

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