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The German Army’s Leopard 2A5 |
A
new report says that Qatar has asked to purchase Leopard 2 combat tanks from
Germany, a month after Saudi Arabia expressed interest in buying the military
vehicles.
The
Sunday report by German weekly magazine Der Spiegel said Doha had asked to buy
about 200 of such tanks at the cost of EUR two billion (USD 2.46 billion).
The
magazine noted that a delegation from the German defense firm, Krauss-Maffei
Wegmann had already travelled to the Qatari capital to arrange the deal, adding
that Chancellor Angela Merkel was in favor of the sale.
The
report angered some German lawmakers, who believe the potential arms deal is
against restrictive guidelines on the sale of weapons to repressive regimes.
Senior
politician Volker Beck, from the opposition Green party, said he opposed the
sale of advanced weaponry to Qatar as the emirate did not observe acceptable
human rights standards.
Last
month, Saudi Arabia expressed interest in acquiring between 600 and 800 Leopard
2 tanks in a potential deal, which is estimated to be worth EUR 10 billion (USD
12.31 billion).
According
to a report, published by Amnesty International, German weaponry, including
small firearms, ammunition, and military vehicles have been massively used in
the Middle East and North Africa to suppress peaceful protests.
(press tv)
Mildly edited by PCF Web desk
Mildly edited by PCF Web desk
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