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Forum on the Arms Trade Experts

Expert

Rachel Stohl

Rachel Stohl

Arms Trade Treaty (ATT)
Regional Expertise
Global
Senior Vice President of Research Programs | Stimson Center
Contact
X / Twitter
Phone:
(202) 223-5956
Email:
rstohl@stimson.org
www.stimson.org/experts/rachel-stohl/

Rachel Stohl is Senior Vice President of Research Programs at the Stimson Center and Director of the Conventional Defense Program. Her areas of expertise focus on issues relating to the international arms trade, including drones, small arms and light weapons, as well as children and armed conflict. 

Prior to joining Stimson she was an associate fellow at Chatham House, the Royal Institute of International Affairs, from 2009-2011. She was a senior analyst at the Center for Defense Information in Washington, DC from 1998-2009. Stohl has also been a consultant for many international organizations, including Oxfam, Project Ploughshares, SIPRI, the Small Arms Survey, and World Vision. She served as a Scoville Fellow at the British American Security Information Council in DC and worked at the United Nations Center for Disarmament Affairs in New York and at the Program for Arms Control, Disarmament, and Conversion in Monterey, CA. Stohl is an adjunct professor in the Security Studies Program at Georgetown University.

Stohl was the consultant to the UN ATT process from 2010-2013 and was previously the consultant to the UN Group of Governmental Experts (GGE) on the Arms Trade Treaty in 2008 and the UN Register for Conventional Arms in 2009.

Stohl is co-author of two books, The International Arms Trade (Polity Press, 2009) and The Beginners Guide to the Small Arms Trade (Oneworld Publishing, 2009). She has appeared in numerous documentaries, including "Making a Killing: Inside the International Arms Trade," available on the DVD of the feature film Lord of War.

Stohl holds an M.A. in international policy studies from the Monterey Institute of International Studies and an honors B.A. in political science and German from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

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Featured Publications

US Conventional Arms Transfer Policy

Stimson Center | February 19, 2026.
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Understanding the Evolution and Emerging Volatility of US Arms Transfer Policies

Stimson Center | February 19, 2026.
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The “America First Arms Transfer Strategy

Reorders US Arms Transfer Priorities | February 12, 2026.
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Publications

  • US Conventional Arms Transfer Policy
    Stimson Center | February 19, 2026.
  • Understanding the Evolution and Emerging Volatility of US Arms Transfer Policies
    Stimson Center | February 19, 2026.
  • The “America First Arms Transfer Strategy
    Reorders US Arms Transfer Priorities | February 12, 2026.
  • Emerging Trends in the Trump Approach to Security Cooperation
    Stimson Center | January 26, 2026.
  • A 20-Year MOU With Israel Is Not in the US Interest
    Stimson Center | November 25, 2025.
  • Ten Years of ATT Reporting: Placing the 2024 Reports in Context
    ATT Baseline Assessment Project | November 14, 2025.
  • Mercenaries in the Battlespace: Assessing How Private Military Companies Shape Escalation Management, Deterrence, and WMD Risks
    Stimson Center | October 6, 2025.
  • Understanding ATT Reporting Challenges: Guidance and Recommendations to Strengthen ATT Reporting
    ATT-Baseline Assessment Project | August 29, 2025.
  • Developing Evaluative Metrics for ATT Reporting
    ATT-Baseline Assessment Project | August 29, 2025.
  • The Arms Trade Treaty: Preventing Diversion Through End-Use and End-User Controls
    issue brief No. 6 | August 26, 2025.
  • ATT Monitor 2025 Annual Report
    Control Arms | July 8, 2025.
  • Undermining A Landmark Landmine Convention
    Stimson Center | March 24, 2025.
  • Policy Void: What Trump’s Rescinding of the U.S. Conventional Arms Transfer Policy Means
    Stimson Center | March 20, 2025.
  • The Arms Trade Treaty: Regulating Brokering to Reduce the Risk of Diversion
    ATT Issue Brief No. 5 | February 27, 2025.
  • February 25 How can we get to 100%? Sharing effective measures to comply with Arms Trade Treaty reporting obligations
    Arms Trade Treaty | February 20, 2025.
  • Biden’s Missed Opportunity on the Arms Trade Treaty
    Stimson Center | December 18, 2024.
  • Reflections on the Arms Trade Treaty at 10
    Stimson Center | December 17, 2024.
  • Biden’s Disturbing Legacy on Landmines
    Stimson Center | December 17, 2024.
  • Fix the Arms Transfer Enterprise: How President Trump can re-orient the U.S. arms trade to deliver stronger returns for U.S. interests
    Stimson Center | November 20, 2024.
  • The Arms Trade Treaty at 10
    Stimson Center | August 20, 2024.
  • Advancing a More Effective and Ethical U.S. Arms Transfer Policy
    Arms Control Association | May 31, 2024.
  • Commemorating 75 Years of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by Committing to a More Responsible Arms Trade
    Stimson Center | December 4, 2023.
  • In Shadow of War, a Snapshot of US Military Assistance to Israel
    Stimson Center | October 13, 2023.
  • The Humanitarian and Strategic Risks of US Cluster Munitions Transfers to Ukraine
    Stimson Center | July 24, 2023.
  • Biden’s New Policy: Can Human Rights Reshape U.S. Conventional Arms Transfers?
    Arms Control Today | 2023
  • The Arms Trade Treaty at Ten
    Stimson Center | April 3, 2023.
  • Over Promising and Under Delivering on Arms Transfer Policies
    The Stimson Center | January 23, 2023.
  • Twenty-five Years of Ridding the World of Landmines
    Stimson Center December 5 | December 5, 2022.
  • A US Plan to Prevent Arms Diversion in Ukraine is Welcome But Just the First Step
    Stimson Center | November 10, 2022.
  • Mixed Reviews: Positive Developments and Negative Trends in 2021 ATT Annual Reports
    Stimson Center | October 25, 2022.
  • October 25 The Continuing Importance of Transparency in Armaments and New Developments
    Reaching Critical Will | October 17, 2022.
  • NSS [National Security Strategy] Overlooks the Defining Dilemma of U.S. Security Cooperation
    Stimson Center | October 14, 2022.
  • The Risks of U.S. Military Assistance to Ukraine
    Stimson Center | July 13, 2022.
  • The Risks of US Military Assistance to Ukraine
    Defense One | July 5, 2022.
  • Biden Administration Announces New APL Landmines Policy
    Stimson Center | June 24, 2022.
  • To Arm or Not to Arm Ukrainians?
    Inkstick | June 10, 2022.
  • Why is the Biden Administration Still Silent on Arms Trade Treaty?
    Stimson Center | April 27, 2022.
  • Taking Stock of ATT Reporting Trends and Challenges
    Stimson Center | 2022
  • Under Caution: Assessing Arms Transfer Risk in Ukraine
    Stimson Center | March 7, 2022.
  • 2020 ATT Annual Reports: Examining Trends and Enduring Challenges
    Stimson Center | October 27, 2021.
  • Demystifying End-Use Monitoring in U.S. Arms Exports
    Center for Civilians in Conflict & Stimson Center | 2021
  • ATT Monitor Report 2021
    Control Arms | 2021
  • Taking Stock of the Arms Trade Treaty: Universalization
    SIPRI | 2021
  • Will Biden have courage on child soldiers?
    The Hill | July 20, 2021.
  • It’s time to rethink US drone policy
    Responsible Statecraft | May 18, 2021.
  • Redraw the Limits on Lethal Force Against Terror Groups
    Defense One | May 10, 2021.
  • Congress's role in ending the 'forever wars
    The Hill | May 5, 2021.
  • At 100 Days, Grading Biden’s Progress Toward a More Responsible US Arms Trade Policy
    Just Security | April 28, 2021.
  • A New Agenda For US Drone Policy And The Use Of Lethal Force
    Stimson Center | 2021
  • Opportunities to Regulate Conventional Arms in the Middle East and Horn of Africa
    Manara Magazine | March 16, 2021.
  • Diversion and the Arms Trade Treaty: Identifying Good Practice and Opportunities for Progress
    Stimson Center | 2021
  • Toward A More Responsible US Arms Trade Policy: Recommendations for the Biden-Harris Administration
    Just Security | January 19, 2021.
  • Policy Recommendations for the New Administration: Improving U.S. Conventional Arms Policies
    Arms Control Today | 2021
  • The Next Administration Should Bring the Shadow Wars into the Light
    Defense One | November 25, 2020.
  • US Arms Transfer Initiative
    Forum on the Arms Trade | March 6, 2018.
  • issue brief
    Arms Control Association | October 10, 2017.
  • interview
    Democracy Now! | January 1, 2017.