Posted on 02/20/2007 7:36:03 PM PST by sukhoi-30mki
Saudis may make weapons with US
By Ahmed A. Elewa, Staff Reporter
Abu Dhabi: The United States is planning to jointly produce tank components, light armoured vehicles and other products in Saudi Arabia, according to a senior US military official.
"Our biggest co-production project in the Middle East is in Egypt, where we jointly produced 1025 M1A1 tanks. In Saudi Arabia we are still in the planning phase, though the project initially will not be as big as what we have in Egypt, but there is good potential for growth there," Brigadier General Clinton Anderson, head of the US Army's Security Assistance Command, told Gulf News yesterday.
Even though no co-production projects have been planned with the UAE, relations and cooperation between the two countries are excellent, the general said.
United States has 32 co-production programmes with other countries and their total value exceeds $32 billion (Dh117.7 billion).
With growing security concerns, Anderson said, demand for air-defence systems and infrastructure protection have surged in the region.
"The clients in the Middle East have become more sophisticated and very specific in their needs, with infrastructure, such as oil production facilities and power production plants, in dire need of protection," said Clifford Beal, director of the US Strix Consultancy.
The US army encourages government-to-government arms sales through the Foreign Military Sales scheme, under which 3.8 per cent of the cost is added to the contracts for maintenance, rather than a manufacturer's direct deal with foreign governments.
"Recipients end up saving money as the 3.8 per cent proves to be much cheaper than the cost of establishing the services on their own," Lieutenant General Jeffery Kohler, director of the Defence Security Cooperation Agency, said in a presentation at the Idex 2007 exhibition yesterday.
This is gonna piss Bin Laden off.
Ohhh well
Iran will crap its pants. I am all for this. The Saudis were key to destroying the Soviet empire and I hope they are key to destroying both bin Laden and Iran, too. I can respect them for this. Yes, we should build all kind of weapons with them if that will take care of business. Saudis aren't stupid.
Wahabbis and arms production. Great. Just Great.
I think I like your view more than sukhoi's...
'KNOW YOUR ENEMY!'
Ahhh,good to see someone with some sense!! Anyway the big Gulf states(Saudis & UAE) have been pushing for greater technology transfer & license production of weaponry sold to them.The Saudis have supposedly asked for rights to assemble the Eurofighters they are buying from the UK,while the UAE is license building French corvettes.
Christ...how long until we no longer produce weapons systems at all....
I would wager that many of our enemy empires have plans to disect to find weaknesses...
& Have you bothered to know what my view on all this is??????
This is BS.
The Saudis are only our friends as long as it suits them.
Our weapon systems should be 100% Made in the USA by American citizen laborers.
Weren't almost all the 9/11 terrorists Saudis?
Isn't Bin Laden a Saudi?
Only an idiot would think the Saudis are allies of ours.
Therefore step ONE to restoring some sanity in the US foreign policy is to stop kissing their asses and, instead, to hold them accountable for all the crap they have been doing to us over the years... funding Wahabbis, approving of radicals, tolerating all the terrorists whom they actually nurture.
We ought to be applying maximal pressure to the Saudis, not kissing their evening-gowned asses.
What State Department cretin thought of this nitwit plan?
I respect & support your contention,but the US would be shut out of the arms market,including those of it's trusted allies if they are not given even a small piece of the pie.
Armssales are to be approved by the highest officials-don't blame the State Dept.
Geez! When will the powers that be learn. Not a good idea.
They don't need to do much.The US(or any other supplier) will set up facilities,transfer basic equipment & train workers to do the job.
Making tanks for the Saudis. WTH?
Reminds me of the warning in the book of John about Jerusalem being surrounded.
Bush is creating prophecy. Foolish.
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