Saturday November 10, 2012

I've Been Thinking:

Two major arms deals have caught my attention of late.

First, Iraq. Iraq has outlined a deal to buy $4 billion worth of weapons from Russia. The weapons will include, among other arms, attack helicopters and missiles. The plan was made public and now domestic Iraqi press is saying that the deal is filled with kickbacks and improprieties.

The biggest issue here is why are the Iraqis buying their arms from Russia and not the US?

Next, Saudi Arabia. I just saw that the US Defense Security Agency has submitted a nearly $7 billion arms deal to Saudi Arabia and has asked for approval from Congress. Congress has 30 days to question or reject the deal.

The deal includes attack fighter jets and five refueling jets. Despite some tensions Saudi Arabia is again purchasing large weapons from the United States.

To give some background and some sense of numbers, in 2010 Saudi Arabia bought $60 billion in weapons from the US. In 2011 there was another arms deal in which the US provided 84 fighter jets in exchange for $30 billion dollars.

Keeping a watchful eye on arms deals is an essential tool to evaluate the flow of contacts and power in the world --- especially in the Middle East.

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