A Pentagon report on weapons found in Iraq after the war revealed a staggering amount of armaments, almost all foreign-made. The report, first disclosed in a new book by one of this column's writers, Bill Gertz, reached this stark conclusion: "Foreign munitions were used against coalition forces during the war and continue to be a potential source of explosives for improvised explosive devices still being used to kill U.S. soldiers."
According to the report cited in "Treachery: How America's Friends and Foes are Secretly Arming Our Enemies," 24 nations supplied armaments to Saddam Hussein. The total amount was between 650,000 tons and 1 million tons. By contrast, the entire U.S. military arsenal is between 1.6 million and 1.8 million tons.
The big three arms suppliers were Russia (and the Soviet Union), China and France: Russia supplied 122 different types of arms and a total of nearly 13 million items; China had provided 19 different types of arms and almost 380,000 items; France had supplied 12 different armaments and more than 115,000 items.
The report was produced by the office of deputy undersecretary of defense for international technology security, John Shaw.
It found that Russia had violated U.N. sanctions on Iraq by selling Saddam Hussein Kornet-E antitank guided weapons. The report said that in March 2003, Kornet missiles, first developed in 1994, were fired at two U.S. Army M-1A1 Abrams tanks near Najaf, disabling them.
The report also stated that Syria purchased 500 to 1,000 Kornets from Ukraine "on behalf of Iraq"; the transfers took place in early 2003, the report said. The Ukrainians had bought the missiles from Russian manufacturers. The report concluded, "Possession of the Kornet-E violates U.N. Security Council Resolution 687," which barred arms sales to Iraq.
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An examply of Putin's Christian charity?
"...improvised explosive devices still being used to kill U.S. soldiers.
"The big three arms suppliers were Russia (and the Soviet Union), China and France: Russia supplied 122 different types of arms and a total of nearly 13 million items... That would be Putin's Russian.
"It found that Russia had violated U.N. sanctions on Iraq by selling Saddam Hussein Kornet-E antitank guided weapons. The report said that in March 2003, Kornet missiles, first developed in 1994." Charity Putin style.
"The Ukrainians had bought the missiles from Russian manufacturers. The report concluded, "Possession of the Kornet-E violates U.N. Security Council Resolution 687," which barred arms sales to Iraq." It's a shame Putin doesn't export Bibles...they would kill fewer of our people.
Ask the Serbs sometime about the fun they had with our bombs.
Putin's Christian charity...illegal arms sales to Islamic nations.
Thanks.
Gertz's book is on my must read book.
The missiles were sold to Ukraine. The Ukrainians sold them onto Iraq via Syria. How is Putin supposed to know where the missiles are going to end up? A lot of arms manufacturers, without the knowledge of their governments, supplied arms to other third parties. On the grey and black arms markets lots of weapons and equipment ended up in Iraq via this means. Western ammunition ended up in Iraq courtesy of the Jordainians. The arms market is exceptionally difficult to control. How did the North Koreans get their hands on US helicopters which made it into their armed forces? Why is the US, UK and the west still supplying arms to Arab and Muslim nations that one day could be used against US and Coalition forces if their nations go the way of Iran? If the Russians were airlifting huge quantities of arms or shipping them into Iraq then we could all start wailing and gnashing, but this was not the case. Dodgy individuals and black markets and arms sales to third parties produced arms to Iraqs - not direct government to government signed deals. Think Iran Contra and how the Iranians got spare parts for their F-14s and supplies of Hawk missiles during the 1980s!