US worry at Venezuela arms
Source: Agencies |
December 13, 2010, Monday
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THE United States tried to stop delivery of Russian anti-aircraft missiles to Venezuela in 2009 amid concerns it could pass them on to guerrillas in Colombia or Mexican drug gangs, The Washington Post said yesterday, citing diplomatic cables from WikiLeaks.
Venezuela, where President Hugo Chavez heads a strongly anti-American government, received at least 1,800 of the SA-24 shoulder-fired missiles from Russia, the Post said, citing United Nations arms control data.
Secret US cables said America was concerned about the acquisition by Caracas of Russian arms, including attack helicopters, Sukhoi fighter jets and 100,000 Kalashnikov rifles, the newspaper reported.
It quoted a US State Department cable on August 10, 2009 to embassies in Europe and South America as saying Russian arms sales to Venezuela totaled "over US$5 billion last year and growing."
Concern about Spanish plans to sell aircraft and patrol boats to Venezuela were also cited in the leaked cable.
Russia reported to the UN Register of Conventional Arms earlier this year that the purchase totaled 1,800 missiles, the Post said. US Air Force General Douglas Fraser said publicly this year Venezuela could be buying as many as 2,400 of the missiles.
A missile expert at the Federation of American Scientists in Washington, Matt Schroeder, told the Post that the Russian missiles are among the world's most sophisticated and can bring down aircraft from 5,790?metres.
"It's the largest recorded transfer in the UN arms registry database in five years, at least. There's no state in Latin America of greater concern regarding leakage that has purchased so many missiles," Schroeder was quoted as saying, in an apparent reference to reports of Venezuelan arms flowing to Colombian guerrillas.
Venezuela, where President Hugo Chavez heads a strongly anti-American government, received at least 1,800 of the SA-24 shoulder-fired missiles from Russia, the Post said, citing United Nations arms control data.
Secret US cables said America was concerned about the acquisition by Caracas of Russian arms, including attack helicopters, Sukhoi fighter jets and 100,000 Kalashnikov rifles, the newspaper reported.
It quoted a US State Department cable on August 10, 2009 to embassies in Europe and South America as saying Russian arms sales to Venezuela totaled "over US$5 billion last year and growing."
Concern about Spanish plans to sell aircraft and patrol boats to Venezuela were also cited in the leaked cable.
Russia reported to the UN Register of Conventional Arms earlier this year that the purchase totaled 1,800 missiles, the Post said. US Air Force General Douglas Fraser said publicly this year Venezuela could be buying as many as 2,400 of the missiles.
A missile expert at the Federation of American Scientists in Washington, Matt Schroeder, told the Post that the Russian missiles are among the world's most sophisticated and can bring down aircraft from 5,790?metres.
"It's the largest recorded transfer in the UN arms registry database in five years, at least. There's no state in Latin America of greater concern regarding leakage that has purchased so many missiles," Schroeder was quoted as saying, in an apparent reference to reports of Venezuelan arms flowing to Colombian guerrillas.
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