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HE the Minister of State for Defence Affairs Major General Hamad bin Ali al-Attiyah and US Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel signing the weapons agreement at the Pentagon in Washington yesterday. |
Qatar plans to buy US Patriot missile batteries and Apache attack helicopters in a major arms deal worth about $11bn, senior Pentagon officials said yesterday.
The sale would provide Qatar with roughly 10 batteries for Patriot systems designed to knock out incoming missiles, as well as 24 Apache helicopters and 500 Javelin anti-tank missiles, officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told AFP.
The weapons deal was the biggest for the US in 2014 and came as Qatar weighs proposals in a fighter jet competition, with US aerospace firm Boeing vying against British BAE Systems and Dassault Aviation of France.
“It’s a good sign,” said a senior US defence official, referring to the arms sale and the prospects for the fighter jet bidding.
“It’s a pretty significant step.”
HE the Minister of State for Defence Affairs Major General Hamad bin Ali al-Attiyah committed to the sale in a signing ceremony yesterday in Washington after talks with his American counterpart, Chuck Hagel.
The US wants to preserve its role as “the defence provider of choice” for Qatar and other Gulf states, the official said.
It was also the first time Qatar had acquired Patriot missiles, which other Gulf countries such as Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, have purchased in the past.
US officials and commanders have long urged their Gulf partners to set up a co-ordinated missile defence network.
The weapons would enhance America’s security and diplomatic ties to Qatar, the US official said.
The Pentagon portrays arms sales as a way of forging closer ties to friendly countries and cultivating relationships with another military through training on US-made aircraft and weapons.
“This is an investment in the next generation (of military leaders)...It’s an investment for the long-run,” the senior official said.
The sale follows a visit to Qatar last December by the US defence secretary, and talks in May between Hagel and Qatari and other Gulf defence chiefs.
Qatar hosts a vital hub for the US military, the Combined Air Operations Centre, where officers oversee combat aircraft in Afghanistan and track air traffic across the volatile Middle East.
Arms sales also are a way of boosting the US economy, and the deal with Qatar is expected to produce up to 54,000 jobs, according to estimates cited by Pentagon officials.
US defence giants Raytheon and Lockheed Martin manufacture the Patriot missile hardware and Javelin anti-tank missiles, while Boeing produces the AH-64 Apache chopper.
The Patriot missile sale, involving 247 PAC-3 missiles, was worth more than $7bn, the Apache helicopters and related gear came to more than $3bn and the Javelin anti-tank missiles over $100mn, according to officials.
