Posted on 01/12/2005 4:17:36 PM PST by neverdem
WASHINGTON, Jan. 11 - The United States and Russia are close to signing an agreement to help control the trafficking of shoulder-fired antiaircraft missiles, a weapon highly prized by terrorists, the Russian defense minister said during a visit here on Tuesday.
The minister, Sergei B. Ivanov, said the deal had been negotiated rapidly during the past several months, and he predicted that "this agreement is sure to be signed pretty soon."
During a joint news conference, neither Mr. Ivanov nor Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld provided details on the agreement.
Mr. Ivanov, however, broadly indicated that the agreement would call for exchanging information between the countries on the production, current arsenals and export of the weapon.
Military officials say the missiles, officially called Man-Portable Air Defense Systems, or Manpads, are valued by terrorists. The weapons could be used to shoot down a commercial airliner, a military passenger plane or helicopter ferrying government and military personnel.
Last year, American intelligence agencies tripled their formal estimate of the number of shoulder-fired missile systems believed to be at large worldwide, after determining that at least 4,000 of the weapons in Iraq's prewar arsenals could not be accounted for.
In 2002, attackers fired two Soviet-made SA-7 missiles and almost hit a commercial aircraft taking off from Mombasa, Kenya.
Mr. Ivanov said controlling the spread of the shoulder-fired missiles, which can be carried in a suitcase-sized container, was "fundamentally important" for both the United States and Russia.
"You know full well that terrorists of all hues and stripes try to get access to Manpads," he said through an interpreter.
Mr. Ivanov noted that during the Soviet era, the shoulder-fired missiles "went about the world," but he noted that the United States also delivered significant numbers of its version of the missile, the Stinger, to anti-Soviet mujahedeen in Afghanistan in the 1980's.
During a visit across Central America last November, Mr. Rumsfeld received an unambiguous promise that Nicaragua would destroy all of its portable antiaircraft missiles supplied by the Soviet Union and Cuba during the 1980's.
More than 2,000 SA-7 missiles remained in the Nicaraguan arsenal at the start of 2004, a potent remnant of a time when the former Sandinista government received military assistance from the Communist world.
Neither Mr. Rumsfeld nor Mr. Ivanov mentioned political tensions that grew between Washington and Moscow over the recent elections in Ukraine.
Asked about the military relationship between the nations, Mr. Rumsfeld said most problems were "not cultural, but procedural," because the two governments are organized differently. Mr. Ivanov saluted the "better transparency in the very sensitive areas of our collaboration."
Mr. Ivanov said the Russian Defense Ministry had accepted an invitation from the Pentagon to take part in a military exercise in April that will involve the movement of "nuclear munitions" in the United States.
I don't know the details of the agreement, but they had better be something like this: NO EXPORT OF MANPADS TO ANY COUNTRY EXCEPT ONE IN A MILITARY ALLIANCE WHO ALSO AGREES TO NO FURTHER EXPORT.
So I'm thinkin' about barn doors, horses,
and gates locked too late.
Herds of horses in this case.
The United States and Russia are close to signing an agreement to help control the trafficking of shoulder-fired antiaircraft missiles, a weapon highly prized by terrorists, the Russian defense minister said during a visit here on Tuesday.Also, this is probably just another ruse, to ensure no competition to Russian models (besides the French) in the market.
Well from what Ive read,it's said that the Igla is superior to the Stinger.Besides the French Mistral has beaten off competition from the Stinger to win contracts from Oman,Spain etc.
related:
Crisis in Israel-Russia Ties
Jpost
Posted on 01/12/2005 8:06:39 AM PST by Alex Marko
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1319205/post
Russia denies Syrian missiles deal
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Posted on 01/13/2005 1:55:57 PM PST by knighthawk
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1320246/posts
Russia-Syria arms deal alarms Israel
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Posted on 01/12/2005 2:35:58 PM PST by Cornpone
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1319492/posts
Syria eager for missiles, experts say
Jpost | Jan. 13, 2005 | NINA GILBERT
Posted on 01/12/2005 11:41:41 PM PST by F14 Pilot
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1319789/posts
Syrian president to visit Russia on reported missile shopping trip
AFP ^ | 01-12-2005
Posted on 01/12/2005 1:13:32 PM PST by Tailgunner Joe
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1319437/posts
U.S. demands Russia cancel proposed missile sale to Syria
Ha'aretz | 13 January 2004 | Ha'aretz Service
Posted on 01/12/2005 2:50:05 PM PST by anotherview
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1319501/posts
somewhat related:
Sources: Syria hosted terror wedding
WorldNetDaily.com | Wednesday, January 12, 2005 | Aaron Klein
Posted on 01/11/2005 11:05:56 PM PST by JohnHuang2
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1318979/posts
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