No wonder Gerhard Schroeder doesn't want us to topple Saddam. Who would Germany sell weapons to, then? If this report is true, I say pull the US out of Germany and let them fend for themselves. Go somewhere that our help is actually appreciated.
From the article:
The most contentious piece of news for Germany is that the report names it as the number one supplier of weapons supplies to Iraq. German firms are supposed to easily outnumber the firms from other countries who have been exporting to Iraq.
They have delivered technical know-how, components, basic substances and even entire technical facilities for the development of atomic, chemical and biological weapons of mass destruction to Iraq right since 1975.
In some cases, conventional military and technical dealings between Germany and Iraq are said to date till 2001, ten years after the second Gulf war and a time when international sanctions against Saddam Hussein are still in place.
The paper reports that the dossier contains several indications of cases, where German authorities right up to the Finance Ministry tolerated the illegal arms cooperation and also promoted to it to an extent.
Pretty amazing, eh? Perhaps it is more Iraqi disinformation. But I bet there is more than a kernel of truth to the report.
Posted by Neal (Nukevet) at December 18, 2002 02:34 PM