[A-List] UK sub-imperialism: crisis management

["Keaney Michael" <Michael.Keaney@xxxxxx>]

Chris wrote:

The imperialist German state is shifting to an actual although
unofficial 
arms embargo against Israel.

See http://lists.econ.utah.edu/pipermail/a-list/2002-April/005441.html


Secret UK ban on weapons for Israel

Blocking of sales mirrors German action

John Hooper in Berlin and Richard Norton-Taylor
Saturday April 13, 2002
The Guardian

Britain has imposed a de facto arms embargo on Israel for the first time
in 20 years, official sources have told the Guardian. The ban applies to
military equipment that could be used in Israel's continuing operations
in the Palestinian territories.

The sources insist Britain has not imposed a formal or complete ban and
Whitehall officials are coy about discussing which sales have been
blocked. Decisions, they say, are being taken on a case-by-case basis.
However, they add that military equipment that would have been cleared
before Israel's offensive against the Palestinians, is now being
blocked.

One Whitehall official pointed to the government's guidelines which
state that arms exports would be blocked if they were for "internal
repression", affected "adversely regional stability in any significant
way", or if there was a clear risk "that the intended recipient would
use the proposed export aggressively against another country, or to
assert by force a territorial claim".

London's undeclared policy mirrors that of Germany and is likely to be
discussed today when the German chancellor, Gerhard Schröder, meets
Tony Blair at Chequers.

One source said the shift in Britain's stance had not been made public
because of deep divisions of opinion in Whitehall over the best response
to developments in the Middle East. These divisions went "a long way
up", said the source.

France had also quietly suspended sales of certain arms, another source
said. The parallel moves by European powers emphasise Israel's growing
estrangement from its allies and make it more dependent than before on
US goodwill.

In Britain's case, refusals to approve arms exports are more significant
politically and diplomatically than militarily, since Britain is not a
major supplier to Israel's armed forces. Nevertheless, according to the
latest figures, the government last year approved £12.5m worth of
military equipment for export to Israel.

It included demolition charges, general purpose machine guns, rifles,
small arms ammunition, components for small calibre artillery
ammunition, and components for air-to-surface missiles, armoured
fighting vehicles, armoured personnel carriers, combat aircraft and
helicopters, and tanks. Whitehall officials made it clear these items
would not now be approved for export to Israel.

Ministers have demanded an explanation from Israel about its use of
British equipment in actions against Palestinians in the occupied
territories. The Foreign Office disclosed last month that Israeli armed
forces had modified British Centurion tanks, exported between 1958 and
1970, into armoured personnel carriers.

Speaking to reporters in London on Thursday, the German defence
minister, Rudolf Scharping, confirmed reports that his country was
refusing export licences for tank parts and other equipment for Israel.
Though he insisted Germany was not operating a formal arms embargo,
Berlin had delayed shipments at what he called "this crucial time".

The Israeli newspaper Yediot Aharonot had reported that Germany slapped
an embargo on 120 parts necessary for the construction of Merkava tanks.
Britain formally embargoed arms to Israel following its invasion of
Lebanon in 1982.

Full article at:
http://politics.guardian.co.uk/foreignaffairs/story/0,11538,683719,00.html


Michael Keaney
Mercuria Business School
Martinlaaksontie 36
01620 Vantaa
Finland

michael.keaney@xxxxxx