Kuwait agrees to US Arms package..."no aircraft included"

What does a Persian Gulf country get if they align themselves with the Bush regime? Sophisticated weapons, of course. In July we witnessed Rice and Gates 'march' around the Persian Gulf delivering promises for insane amounts of U.S. taxpayer dollars worth of America's finest offensive weapons...smart bombs, aircraft, missiles...the works. Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, and Israel are now official 'mini' US ordinance droppers...but what if you're little ol' Kuwait? What did you get for allowing the U.S. to use your sovereign lands as a staging ground for the US for decades?

oh just a few Defensive weapons....at least from the U.S.

On Friday, Sheikh Jaber al-Hamad al-Sabah of Kuwait told reporters that his nation plans to purchase anti-missile Patriot systems from the United States.

"Kuwait has deals (with the United States) but that does not include aircraft," he added, "It will be equipment such as watercraft and anti-missile systems such as Patriot missiles" reuters

Why the emphasis on NO AIRCRAFT...seems out of the ordinary, right? Our trusty right wing think tank, The Heritage Foundation offers a little 'hindsight' into the issue with a controversial article titled, "The Saudi and Kuwaiti Arms Deals: Who Is the Masochist?" Written in July of 1988, the author eerily describes the first US/UK (BAE) 'arming' of the Gulf against Saddam and Iran. Here are a few excerpts...

The Saudis decided to seek British arms because past efforts to obtain American weapons have been denied, delayed, or reduced by the U.S. Congress. According to a Saudi official, "We would prefer to buy weapons from the United States. American technology is generally superior. But we are not going to pay billions of dollars to be insulted. We are -not masochists."
....
When considering the proposal, Congress should remember that Kuwait is a beleaguered mini state that has stood firm against Iranian intimidation despite Iranian-supported terrorist bombings, Iranian attacks on Kuwaiti shipping, and Iranian air strikes, artillery bombardments, and missile attacks on Kuwaiti territory. For Congress to-turn its back on Kuwait at this critical juncture would sour the ripening Kuwaiti-American relation- ship
....
The proposed Kuwaiti arms deal will buttress a pro-Western Arab state against Iranian aggression and help reduce the long-term burden of the U.S. naval presence in the Persian Gulf.
.... More ominously, it will seem to confirm Iran's publicly stated belief that the U.S. is growing "short of breath" in the Persian Gulf.

The other 'mini states'... Bahrain, Oman, Qatar and the UAE were taken care of during Admiral Fallon's 'Containment Tour' in mid September 2007

Or as a Bush official stated on July 28th, 2007...19 years after the first arming of the Gulf by the U.S. and UK (BAE)...

The deal was part of long-term U.S. efforts to assist allies rather than a new push to arm them, the official said.

"This isn't an arming of the Middle East," the official said. "This is part of a continual, deliberate program." reuters

Thump. thump. thump...the drumbeat to war is increasing

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