Britain's Ministry of Defense Thursday ordered four more large merchant ships to haul armor in preparation for a possible military assault on Iraq, shipping sources said. "They've come in again today for four roll-on roll-off ships to carry tracked vehicles, and containers, probably used to store ammunition," an industry source familiar with the ministry's operations told Reuters. There was no immediate comment from the ministry.
The tender request follows an order for three ships Wednesday,
one to haul 900 containers and a semi-submersible vessel used to move landing craft. The source said the four fresh orders were for delivery by Jan. 15 and were exactly the same size as the one requested Wednesday. Each can carry up to 10,000 metric tons of equipment. The merchant ships are due for delivery to Britain's south coast to sail between northern Europe and the eastern Mediterranean according to a summary of the tender document. The source said the ministry could be hiring the vessels to shuttle equipment between military ports, although the ships could easily be diverted to the Gulf should the need arise. He said they were initially on hire for three months with an option for a further three.
That must be one heck of a exercise they got planned |