U.S. to push 11 billion arms deal with Iraq despite instability

   In spite of the violence and political unrest in Iraq the U.S. is pushing ahead with a deal that is worth nearly 11 billion and includes  fighter jets and tanks. No doubt the military-industrial complex will be pleased.
   In Iraq the coalition government has broken down as a major coalition partner has left the government. One Sunni province has declared itself a federal area against the wishes of the central government. See the appended video.
   Sectarian strife appears to be growing after the Sunni vice-president Tariq al-Hashemi was accused of being involved in terror attacks and a plot against president Maliki. Opponents of Maliki claim that the charges are politically motivated and that Maliki is attempting to consolidate power.

   An analyst and editor of the Swiss  Military Review said: "The types of weapons which have been sold, F16s, M1 Abrams tanks, these vehicles, these aircraft, have been designed 20 or 30 years ago," "It is all extremely relative when you consider this arms deal sale worth about $11bn and you compare this to the $60bn deals with much more advanced aircraft sold to Saudi Arabia recently." The analyst points out that if the U.S. did not provide this equipment other countries would. Spare parts of course will need to come from the U.S. This gives the U.S. leverage in Iraq and at the same time helps out the U.S. based arms production industries involved.