An Excerpt from the NYT, June 7, 2007:
LONDON (AP) — A Saudi prince received millions of dollars for his own use as part of Britain’s largest arms deal, the British Broadcasting Corp. said.
In upcoming report from its ”Panorama” program, the BBC says that the payments went to Prince Bandar bin Sultan, who negotiated the $80 billion Al-Yamamah arms deal to sell 100 warplanes in 1985.
BAE Systems, the prime contractor, has denied that it ever violated British law in relation to the contract. Prince Bandar refused to comment, the BBC said in a statement Wednesday.
Al-Yamamah, meaning ”the dove,” was the name given to an agreement under which BAE supplied Tornado fighter jets and other military equipment to Saudi Arabia, which paid the British government with oil. The full extent of the deal was never revealed but it was widely believed to be Britain’s largest-ever export agreement.
Prince Bandar bin Sultan ///
Would Somebody Please buy this Dude a Plane?
Prime Minister Tony Blair has taken responsibility for calling off an investigation by the Serious Fraud Office into allegations that BAE Systems ran a $120 million ‘’slush fund” offering sweeteners to Saudi officials in return for contracts as part of the Al-Yamamah deal.
”This investigation, if it had gone ahead, would have involved the most serious allegations in investigations being made into the Saudi royal family and my job is to give advice as to whether that is a sensible thing in circumstances where I don’t believe the investigation incidentally would have led anywhere except to the complete wreckage of a vital strategic relationship for our country,” Blair said. ”Quite apart from the fact that we would have lost thousands, thousands of British jobs.”
Bush + Abdullah = Forever
Miss Shock & Awe: What Else You Got?
“Would Somebody Please buy this Dude a Plane?”
that “dude” is an excellent fighter pilot who flew F-15’s in Royal Saudi Air Force for over 10 years and have flew and tested F-16’s by himself in US skies
The use of the informal slang — “This Dude” — is intended to characterize the cavalier attitude of Westerners toward thier dealings of this sort (especially when they think no one is looking).
Admittedly, I don’t know much about Prince Bandar bin Sultan or much of the Saudi elite. However, do you think that the Prince is exempt from criticism because of his “Royal” status. If so, don’t you think that this attitude is contrary to the notion of an open society?