While the Peruvian armed forces have traditionally prepared for conventional conflict with neighboring Ecuador and Chile, Peru's arms requirements from the late 1980s to the mid-1990s were driven primarily by the internal security threat posed by the Sendero Luminoso (Shining Path) guerrillas and, to a lesser extent, the Tupac Amaru guerrillas (see Peru Analysis report). Thus, counterinsurgency (COIN) equipment was more of a priority than conventional equipment. It must also be pointed out that Peru's economic crisis of the same period forced the government to reduce or suspend several acquisitions, particularly those not crucial to COIN efforts, such as that of Mirage 2000 fighters.
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