Iraq Buys $3 Billion Worth of U.S. Fighter JetsSeptember 30, 2011
 The Iraqi government has agreed to spend about $3 billion to buy 18 U.S. fighter jets, according to an Associated Press article in The Philadelphia Inquirer. The U.S. has agreed sell the F-16s to help the Iraqis maintain air sovereignty over their air space. The jets are unlikely to arrive in the country until 2013. Iraq had previously said that its air force does not have the capability to defend Iraqi airspace yet and that it will need U.S. support until 2020. In the meantime, U.S. troops will continue to patrol the Iraqi skies. Still, a U.S. Army Lt. Gen. called the deal "a game-changing capability." Meanwhile, Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari noted the deal was more than just a purchase of weapons. The deal, he said, let the world "know that Iraq is an ally of the United States in the region." The $3 billion deal includes a package to train Iraqi pilots for 18 months. Some $1.4 billion of the deal has already been transferred to the U.S. as a partial payment, the article noted. The deal appeared to be in trouble earlier this year when Iraq decided to spend more on food rations for its poor before buying these expensive weapons. That decision came around the time of great unrest in Egypt, Tunisia and Yemen. An Iraqi spokesman said the purchase of the F-16s was critical for the "country's security" and called its air force the "backbone" of Iraqi defense. |
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