dddooo challenged me on Israel's aid to Burma. Well!!! Here you go buddy! "Jane's continued: "Israel's repeated denial of any military links with Myanmar are not unexpected. Israel has never liked advertising such ties, particularly with countries like Myanmar, [apartheid-era] South Africa and China, which have been condemned by the international community for gross abuses of human rights." To the list of military clients Israel never liked advertising, you can add the dictatorships that once ruled Argentina, Colombia, Chile, Nicaragua and other Latin American countries, as well as past and/or present military dictatorships in Congo, Angola, Sierra Leone and other African nations. The sadistic Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega owed his life, and his power, to Mike Harari, the ex-Mossad agent who led the team of mercenaries that was Noriega's palace guard. The Israeli arch-mercenary Yair Klein and his boys trained Colombia's right-wing death squads, drug cartels and whoever else would meet his price. When the apartheid regime of South Africa was having problems with black demonstrators, Israeli "security companies" sold the white rulers electrified fences and gravel-spraying trucks. THIS IS a partial list. Israel, tiny as it is, sells 10%-12% of the world's arms. Who really knows where it all ends up? And as long as it doesn't reach Muslim hands, who in this country, besides of course the bleeding hearts and traitors, really cares? Source you say??? http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1191257215260&pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull
First of all I did not challenge you, I merely pointed out that Israel was not even on the radar among countries doing business with Burma although I have no doubt that Israel just like probably any other country on the planet might have done some business with Myanmar. Second, arm sales is not aid, it's a business transaction - you got the terminology wrong (or deliberately lied). Third, the article you posted is an op-ed piece based on the same one source that you had posted and as such does not prove or disprove anything. Forth the Burma police are not using Uzi. Fifth, you "forgot" to mention the following quote from the article: "And, of course, this is true. French energy companies are much, much more crucial to the Myanmar junta's survival than Israeli defense contractors. Apartheid South Africa did a lot more business with the US and Europe than it ever did with Israel. Third World dictatorships are magnets for mercenaries and arms dealers throughout the world; ex-IDF and ex-Mossad men have a very small piece of the pie..."
The Indian government is offering a package of military assistance to the Burmese army, which is likely to use such arms and training to attack against civilians in its war against ethnic insurgents, Human Rights Watch said today. India's air force chief, S. P. Tyagi, offered a multimillion dollar aid package to Burma's military This aid package includes counterinsurgency helicopters, avionics upgrades of Burma's Russian- and Chinese-made fighter planes, and naval surveillance aircraft. This followed recent pledges in early November by Indian army chief of staff, J. J. Singh, to help train Burmese troops in special warfare tactics. Early this year, India sold Burma two BN-2 Islander maritime surveillance aircraft that it had brought from the United Kingdom in the 1980s. Later this year, India sold T-55 tanks and 105mm artillery pieces to the SPDC. The Burmese military routinely uses weapons such as artillery and mortars in conflict areas to destroy villages and exact retributions against civilian settlements as it wages war against ethnic insurgents. India's offer to train Burmese special forces in counterinsurgency tactics also risks contributing to further serious human rights abuses. For the past 10 years India has increased military cooperation with the military government in Burma http://www.indoburmanews.net/statements-1/InMitoBurma/
Thu 15 Jul 2004 Arms Deliveries A survey of arms deals with Burma over the past 18 months has revealed the following: China Rangoon is locked into a continuing close logistical relationship with Beijing, due to the need to maintain all the arms and military equipment purchased from China, at an estimated cost of billions of dollars, since 1988. However, the SPDC is interested in acquiring even more arms, and new weapons and consignments of materiel continue to be delivered. There have been reports of 200 heavy-duty trucks crossing the China-Burma border, and of shipments of unspecified âair force weaponsâ, multiple rocket launchers and possibly artillery. There were also reports in March 2004 that the Burma Army was negotiating yet another arms deal with China, this time to buy obsolescent weapons being phased out by the Peopleâs Liberation Army. In addition, there have long been rumors that Burma has been negotiating with China for the purchase of combat helicopters, minesweepers, anti-ship missiles and sea mines. North Korea Rangoonâs developing relationship with Pyongyang has gone well beyond the small arms ammunition purchased in 1990, and the sixteen 130mm artillery pieces acquired by the SPDC in 1998. For example, in 2003 a team of North Korean technicians was sent to Rangoon to install surface-to-surface missiles on some new Burma Navy vessels. In addition, discussions have taken place between Rangoon and Pyongyang over the purchase of a small submarine, and possibly even a number of SCUD short-range ballistic missiles. Late last year there were even suggestions that North Korea was assisting Burma with the construction of a nuclear reactor, raising the specter of the Rangoon regime one day acquiring a nuclear weapon. India As part of a renewed effort to get closer to Burma, India has provided the Tatmadaw with a range of weapons, ammunition and equipment. In May 2003 the Indian Defense Ministry confirmed that it had sold the Tatmadaw eighty 75mm howitzers (or âmountain gunsâ). Also, India has reportedly sold mortar and artillery ammunition to Rangoon, and advanced communications equipment. A Burmese military delegation visiting India in early 2004 said that the Tatmadaw welcomed further arms deals. The Indian Defense Minister has stated that New Delhi is keen to sell Burma naval vessels. A demonstration by Indian combat aircraft in Burma this year prompted speculation about future sales to the Burma Air Force. Ukraine The Russian language press stated in late 2002 that the Ukraine had contracted to provide Burma with some 36D6 radar systems. In mid-2003 it was reported that the Ukraine had sold the Tatmadaw 50 T-72 main battle tanks. In February 2004, a Ukrainian-flagged ship made a secret delivery to Rangoon, probably of air defense weapons. Also, in May 2003, one of the Ukraineâs leading arms exporters signed a contract with Burma worth US $500 million, to provide the Rangoon regime with components for 1,000 BTR-3U light armored personnel carriers. Over the next ten years these vehicles will be supplied in parts, and assembled in a new, purpose-built factory in Burma. More arms deals between Rangoon and Kiev are likely. Serbia In December 2003, Serbian language sources claimed that Rangoon had contracted with Belgrade to buy a number of âNoraâ self-propelled howitzers. The cost of these weapons, which are marketed by Jugoimport-SDPR, is unknown. In addition, in March 2004 about 30 Serbian engineers arrived in Burma to repair and upgrade the Burma Air Forceâs 12 Soko G-4 jets, which were purchased from the Republic of Yugoslavia in the 1990s. These aircraft have been grounded for several years, due largely to a lack of spare parts. Russia In late 2002 the SPDC purchased eight MiG-29B-12 air superiority combat aircraft and two dual-seat MiG-29UB trainers from Russia, at a reported cost of about US $130 million. All these aircraft were delivered to Burma by the end of 2003. In addition, in July 2002 Rangoon signed a contract with the Russian Ministry of Atomic Energy (Minatom) for the construction of a nuclear reactor in Burma. While the project has encountered major problems, probably due to its cost, it may still go ahead. It is likely that the shipments of Russian military equipment detected in southern Burma in April 2003, which were thought to be components for the reactor, were in fact deliveries of a new communications system. Slovakia According to a news report dated October 2003, the Unipex Company of Slovakia is currently being investigated for taking part in the illegal export to Burma of machines for the manufacture of âartillery grenadesâ (possibly rocket propelled grenades). It is likely that other contracts have been signed but not yet been made public. The frequent visits to Rangoon of North Korean and Ukrainian cargo vessels over the past 18 months, and the measures taken to hide the nature of their cargoes, strongly suggests that other deliveries of arms and equipment have occurred. Several eastern European countries are keen to sell arms to Burma. Also, countries like Singapore, Pakistan and Israel maintain close links with Rangoon. All have weapon systems that are on the Tatmadawâs wish list. In the past, these factors have often led to substantial sales of weapons, military equipment and dual use goods to Burma, and related training contracts. http://www.burmanet.org/news/2004/07/15/irrawaddy-the-arms-keep-coming-but-who-pays-william-ashton/