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| Europe |
| Germans Charged with Trying to Sell Arms to Iraq |
| 2003-03-25 |
| German prosecutors said on Tuesday they had filed charges against two German businessmen they accused of trying to deliver missile components to Iraq. I'm shocked, shocked, I tell you!..... A spokesman for the prosecutor's office in the western town of Bielefeld said the men had admitted trying to sell the missile parts to Iraq in breach of a United Nations embargo and German export regulations. The office has filed charges against the men, who have not been named, with the district court in the city of Muenster, the spokesman told Reuters. State prosecutor Eckhard Baade told German ARD television that one of the accused had admitted that he and a business partner met three Iraqi generals in Baghdad last December where they received a list of required electronic components. Three months ago The two accused had planned to get some of the components produced in Germany and to deliver them to Iraq, ARD said in a statement. One of the men had admitted that a blueprint confiscated by police had been the design of a missile guidance system, ARD said, citing Baade. Ooops! The case follows the conviction in January of a German businessman who was sentenced to five years and three months in prison for exporting weapons material to Iraq in 1999. See a pattern here? Wonder what else we'll find after we start digging? |
| Posted by:Steve |
| #14 ...and one more thing. Will those who said "containment works!" Now step forward and admit that it was a total failure in the last few years? There was no possibility, none, of "re-containing" Saddam. The door was obviously wide open in France, Germany, and Russia. Yet another nail in the anti-war coffin. |
| Posted by: R. McLeod 2003-03-26 00:46:51 |
| #13 Hey Anon, Remember those famous weapons inspectors in Iraq? Remember the Iraqi declarations in November? Do you think if Iraq had done business with U.S. companies they would have concealed that? It would have been the first thing in the damn report. No, sir, French, German and Russian businesses have dirty, dirty hands in Iraq. The only question is whether their governments were aware of the transactions. That's all. As for China, well, business is government there. If the German government shows good faith, and has shown good faith, we're not going to go hard on them. France has shown no good faith. The jury is out on the Russians. The Chinese can go fuck themselves. |
| Posted by: R. McLeod 2003-03-26 00:44:19 |
| #12 "Anonymous. This is the Black Helicopter Squadron. Put down the bong and come out of your room in your mothers' cellar with your hands up. We are taking you to Texas to be interrogated by the DEA..." |
| Posted by: tu3031 2003-03-25 23:20:06 |
| #11 anon, wasn't that a U.N.-sanctioned no-fly zone? What was wrong with bombing it every other day, when Iraq was shooting at us every day? |
| Posted by: eric 2003-03-25 21:50:01 |
| #10 See, it's starting already (Anonymous). Find any WMD and they say the US planted it. Bastards. TGA is that you? |
| Posted by: RW 2003-03-25 20:20:30 |
| #9 In Texas killers get executed. Still Texans kill others, right? The UN sanctions have been violated by many countries. The stricter the sanctions the bigger the profit. Ask the DEA (re War on Drugs). Only from nations that are against the war? Well most nations ARE against the war. Micronesia, Palau, El Salvador and all the other "please-don't tell-others-coalition-countries" are not really big weapons producers, right? One reason why Iraqis felt more confident with Non-US dealers might be that they preferred to deal with people from nations that didn't bomb the non fly zones every other day. We might never find out if US companies (maybe under a French hat) violated the sanctions. After all the US will get the papers first and they might prefer to embarrass others, not themselves. |
| Posted by: Anonymous 2003-03-25 17:57:29 |
| #8 The reason we don't say that the U.S. is child molesters is because it happens everywhere. Illegal arms deals to Iraq don't come from everywhere. They seem to only come from the nations that are against the war, and Anti-American. And if you still can't figure out why we're suspicious about these countries, it's because we've been proven correct. How many illegal arms deals to Iraq come from the U.S. Why is there such a massive difference between the two nations?, and how on earth can they say that this is proof that Germany is strict with their companies? If Germany doesn't let their companies get away with it, how do they manage to keep doing it? |
| Posted by: Mike N. 2003-03-25 16:12:20 |
| #7 Making profits illegally is always enticing. It only starts to be a real problem when the government lets you get away with it. This doesn't happen in Germany. If they catch you, you're toast. Germany has always been eager to strictly play by the rules. In France government and big companies are often in the same bed, hence the "raison d'état" often tries to jeopardize judicial proceedings. |
| Posted by: Anonymous 2003-03-25 15:50:06 |
| #6 Amiland's been reporting on this stuff. Last count Germany was looking into 109 companies. And that's why we won't be as painful for them. |
| Posted by: Anonymous 2003-03-25 15:07:08 |
| #5 Anon, good for the Germans. Let's see some more of this, because I suspect there is more there. Funny, I haven't seen much about French prosecutors bringing charges against French companies and businessmen for illegal arms sales to Iraq. Two explanations: 1) there aren't any. 2) hmmmm ... |
| Posted by: Steve White 2003-03-25 14:49:34 |
| #4 People have been prosecuted and jailed for illegal deals with Iraq in Germany for years. |
| Posted by: Anonymous 2003-03-25 13:35:01 |
| #3 Let's cover our asses pronto ! Quick, make it look like we're "battling" the problem, as opposed to getting manila envelopes stuffed with cash. |
| Posted by: Anonymous 2003-03-25 13:25:37 |
| #2 First the Russkies, then the Krauts, then (the Frogs...) |
| Posted by: Spot 2003-03-25 13:22:03 |
| #1 Do you realize one thing? German businessmen break the law. They are prosecuted... in Germany. Justice is upheld. If someone in the US molests a child and is prosecuted, would anyone say that the US is a child molester nation? Of course when you start digging you have the chance to ... errr... only find what you want to find. And shred the embarrassing rest. |
| Posted by: Anonymous 2003-03-25 13:19:35 |