For the Gulf states, diplomacy involves buying weapons they don’t need

The Economist ^ | Mar 1st 2018

[sukhoi-30mki]

WHEN Qatar celebrated its national day in December, warplanes whizzed over the seaside corniche in quick succession: six French-made Mirage fighters, six cargo planes and a squadron of propeller-powered trainers. That was half of the air force. The world’s wealthiest state, with a native population of only 300,000, has never been known for its martial prowess. The first three aircraft deployed to enforce a no-fly zone over Libya in 2011 had to make emergency landings in Cyprus.

Yet Qatar plans to increase the size of its air force. Since June it has signed $20bn in contracts to buy 96 new jets from three countries: F-15s from America, Typhoons from Britain and Rafales from France. The shopping spree is one side-effect of the nine-month-old blockade of Qatar by Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The quartet wants Qatar to end its support for Islamist groups, among other things. But the move has awakened rare displays of nationalism in the tiny emirate, the military build-up being one example. “We need to plan for the worst,” says Khalid al-Attiyah, the defence minister. “I still see $25bn as not enough.”

Western defence officials already wonder how Qatar will incorporate the new kit. The standing army numbers just 27,500 men. Fewer than 10% are in the air force, which will need hundreds of new pilots to fly an expanded fleet. The air academy graduated just 30 last year, though it hopes to double that number in 2018. It will need to train them on three different platforms, a decision that puzzles some military attachés. Mr Attiyah defends the purchases. The F-15s are strike fighters, he notes, whereas the European jets are better suited to air-to-air combat.

[sukhoi-30mki]

[sportutegrl]

When I read the headline, I thought it was about the states on the Gulf of Mexico. Residents from Texas to Florida will tell you they always need another hunting rifle.