A front page story in the Wall Street Journal last week and THIS item from Reuters reveals the steps being taken by the Iraqi government to increase its military might and solidify its perceived victory over competing factions.
Iraq eyes Lockheed F-16 fighter aircraft purchase
Fri Sep 5, 2008 12:13pm EDT
By Jim Wolf
WASHINGTON, Sept 5 (Reuters) - The Iraqi government has asked for information about buying 36 F-16 fighter aircraft built by Lockheed Martin Corp ...What better symbol of the normalcy of relations between Iraq and Washington? The Iraqi government has jelled in recent months and now sees its future as a blossoming U.S. client state (ally in the Terror War?).
The request, received Aug. 27, is being reviewed "in the normal course of business" as part of the U.S. government-to-government arms sale process, said Air Force Lt. Col. Patrick Ryder, a Pentagon spokesman.
F-16s are among the world's most advanced multirole fighters and a powerful symbol of military ties to the United States. Iraq's interest in the fighter jet, reported first by The Wall Street Journal, could spark concerns among neighbors worried about advanced arms in the hands of a country still facing major internal challenges. ...
With Iraqi oil pumping and the petrodollars flowing into the U.S. military-industrial complex as powerful weapons needed for maintaining "stability" flow back, the not unfamiliar pattern of Arab client states doing the bidding of the U.S. comes to Iraq.
But you know the part of this story I really find amazing is just how typical the Iraq situation is becoming. Reuters mentions that the most advanced F-16s are being produced in Poland, Israel, Greece and Pakistan; while Morocco has recently become the "25th and latest overseas buyer with a deal for 24 new Block 50/52 models"!
After the crushing blows and millions of deaths and displacements in Iraq, U.S. mandarins revel in a "stable" future that will be grim indeed for the bulk of the population. Meanwhile, discussion of whether or not unbridled militarism is right for America is the farthest thing from the attention of the presidential campaign.
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