I refer you to an article published in the Guardian newspaper on August 24th, here 2006, clinic entitled, drugs “Peace Is For Wimps”. It is a report defining how the British government acts as an arms salesman for the major British manufacturers. It details aspects of the underlying corruption prevalent in the field; how legal loopholes are provided by government to sell arms, and their accessories, in what would otherwise be illegal transactions.
The report also highlighted a forty billion pound ($75 billion) arms deal with Saudi Arabia, brokered in 1985 by the then British prime minister, Margaret Thatcher. Evidence suggested that sixty million pounds ($110 million) was set aside by the British company BAE Systems, as a slush fund to “oil” that deal by greasing the palms of various members of the Saudi royal family – in everyday parlance, bribery.
As a result, the Serious Fraud Squad, started an investigation into these allegations but was stonewalled by successive British governments for the next fourteen years.
In August 2006, the British company, BAE Systems, announced the sale of seventy-two Eurofighters to Saudi Arabia. Saudi agreement to the deal was reached only on condition the investigations by the Serious Fraud Squad were terminated.
Today, in parliament the British Attorney General Lord Goldsmith announced the investigation was to be “discontinued” as there was “no case to answer”.
Lord Goldsmith told parliament the British prime minister, Tony Blair, had agreed that continung the investigation would cause “serious damage” to relations between Britain and the Saudis.
“Peace Is For Wimps”, by George Monbiot is available on the archives of his blog – HERE.
Two days ago the New York Times reported:
“Saudi Arabia has told the Bush administration that it might provide financial backing to Iraqi Sunnis in any war against Iraq’s Shiites if the United States pulls its troops out of Iraq, according to American and Arab diplomats.”
The Times also stated:
“Until now Saudi officials have promised their counterparts in the United States that they would refrain from aiding Iraq’s Sunni insurgency. But that pledge holds only as long as the United States remains in Iraq.”
Interesting, given that al Qaeda is supposedly behind the Sunni insurgency in Iraq, the leader of al Qaeda is a prominent and wealthy Saudi, and the majority of 9/11 terrorists were Sunnis from Saudi Arabia.
Underhand deals such as those conspired between BAE Systems, the British government and Saudi Arabia, are obviously commonplace. “Business” is no longer an honorable profession, but whether on this side of the Atlantic or in Europe, consists of an almost Mafia style network of corruption in which Saudi Arabia is a key operator.
George W Bush is now in a quandary. The Saudis have stymied any possibility of an American pull-out from Iraq, and George is – as the saying goes – between a rock and a hard place.
It begs the question:
Who really holds the reigns of power in this world?
Filed under: Criminals all
