Defense Minister: Iraq to buy $1.5 billion in new weapons

A Russian-made MI-17 in St. Petersberg stands ready for delivery to the new Iraqi Air Force in February. Twenty-eight are to be delivered following a $400 million corruption scandal which 'bought' decrepit, unusable helicopters from Poland.

BAGHDAD (AFP) - Iraq's defence ministry will buy new weapons worth more than 1.5 billion dollars (1.11 billion euros), including helicopters and US rifles, the minister announced on Monday.

The purchases will be made possible by a 26 percent increase in the country's defence budget, to 4.1 billion dollars (three billion euros) for the current fiscal year.

"The Iraqi government has signed a contract with the American government to set up a foreign weapons sales office to buy weapons that Iraq needs," Defence Minister Abdel Qader Jassim Mohammed said at a Baghdad press conference.

"This programme will help Iraq to buy modern weapons and to ensure arrival of these weapons when the ministry asks for them," he added.

Read the rest at Yahoo News

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