.France markets arms to Iraq after 2-decade lull
PARIS (AP) - France, which famously opposed the Iraq war, is in talks to resume sales of military equipment to Baghdad for the first time in nearly two decades, French and Iraqi officials say.
This means that France, a major global arms vendor and once a key supplier to ex-Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, is maneuvering back into a lucrative military market that the United States has dominated since the 2003 invasion of Iraq. The officials say French merchandise now on offer includes helicopters and spare parts for weaponry that France sold Iraq back in the 1980s.
It's not about "replacing the Americans, or rejecting them," Jawad Bashara, spokesman for the Iraqi Embassy in France, said in an interview Friday. "Iraq needs to renew its military capacity, and needs to have several arms suppliers, not just one state."
Bashara said a delegation headed by Iraq's air force chief is expected in France in the next two weeks to finalize a contract for 30 surveillance and rescue helicopters, with an option to buy 20 more. He would not specify the make of aircraft or put a value on the deal, saying only that it would be below list price for the equipment.
French and Iraqi officials are also discussing the possibility of French military training for Iraqis and sales of parts for French-made weapons systems, he said. Talks on combat aircraft or new weapons systems could come later.
A French defense official confirmed that talks have been under way for more than a year on renewing military ties with Iraq. The official said France had not sold military goods to Iraq since 1990, when the U.N. imposed a trade embargo following the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait.
A French diplomat said France is ready to equip Iraq with military material as part of the French government's support for Iraq getting back more control from U.S. forces.
Both the diplomat and the defense official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about military matters.
Any eventual deal would take some time, and need to go through a web of Iraqi government approvals devised to prevent graft. The government has been particularly cautious since corruption charges were leveled against a former defense procurement chief, Ziad Cattan. One case investigated was a 2004 deal he engineered for Polish helicopters that fell through because the equipment turned out to be 28 years old.
Most of Iraq's military equipment has been supplied by the United States or Britain in recent years, though Iraq's government has also bought combat helicopters from Russia.
Bashara said the French helicopter deal took shape during Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner's visit to Iraq in May.
Kouchner has pushed to rebuild diplomatic ties with Iraq that were severed after the 2003 U.S.-led invasion, which was stiffly opposed by former President Jacques Chirac's government.
Iraq studied helicopters from various countries but settled on France because of the two countries' past military ties, Bashara said.
Iraq's air force was nearly wiped out after the U.S. invasion, and still has no air-ready fixed-wing aircraft, military analysts say.
Eurocopter, a branch of the French-German defense group EADS and the only company currently making helicopters in France, would not comment on the possible deal.
Military analysts said the deal could involve equipment sold by Eurocopter or direct government-to-government sales of used French aircraft.
MyWay
Clearly the "black list" no longer hold the sway they once did.
This means that France, a major global arms vendor and once a key supplier to ex-Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, is maneuvering back into a lucrative military market that the United States has dominated since the 2003 invasion of Iraq. The officials say French merchandise now on offer includes helicopters and spare parts for weaponry that France sold Iraq back in the 1980s.
It's not about "replacing the Americans, or rejecting them," Jawad Bashara, spokesman for the Iraqi Embassy in France, said in an interview Friday. "Iraq needs to renew its military capacity, and needs to have several arms suppliers, not just one state."
Bashara said a delegation headed by Iraq's air force chief is expected in France in the next two weeks to finalize a contract for 30 surveillance and rescue helicopters, with an option to buy 20 more. He would not specify the make of aircraft or put a value on the deal, saying only that it would be below list price for the equipment.
French and Iraqi officials are also discussing the possibility of French military training for Iraqis and sales of parts for French-made weapons systems, he said. Talks on combat aircraft or new weapons systems could come later.
A French defense official confirmed that talks have been under way for more than a year on renewing military ties with Iraq. The official said France had not sold military goods to Iraq since 1990, when the U.N. imposed a trade embargo following the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait.
A French diplomat said France is ready to equip Iraq with military material as part of the French government's support for Iraq getting back more control from U.S. forces.
Both the diplomat and the defense official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about military matters.
Any eventual deal would take some time, and need to go through a web of Iraqi government approvals devised to prevent graft. The government has been particularly cautious since corruption charges were leveled against a former defense procurement chief, Ziad Cattan. One case investigated was a 2004 deal he engineered for Polish helicopters that fell through because the equipment turned out to be 28 years old.
Most of Iraq's military equipment has been supplied by the United States or Britain in recent years, though Iraq's government has also bought combat helicopters from Russia.
Bashara said the French helicopter deal took shape during Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner's visit to Iraq in May.
Kouchner has pushed to rebuild diplomatic ties with Iraq that were severed after the 2003 U.S.-led invasion, which was stiffly opposed by former President Jacques Chirac's government.
Iraq studied helicopters from various countries but settled on France because of the two countries' past military ties, Bashara said.
Iraq's air force was nearly wiped out after the U.S. invasion, and still has no air-ready fixed-wing aircraft, military analysts say.
Eurocopter, a branch of the French-German defense group EADS and the only company currently making helicopters in France, would not comment on the possible deal.
Military analysts said the deal could involve equipment sold by Eurocopter or direct government-to-government sales of used French aircraft.
MyWay
Clearly the "black list" no longer hold the sway they once did.
posted by madtom at 9:15 PM
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