Russia announces Libyan arms deal

Saturday, January 30, 2010

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin announced today that the country will supply US$1.8bn (€1.3bn) worth of weapons to Libya. The deal, which will include small-arms and other weapons, is worth almost a quarter of last year's arms exports.

The deal was signed on Friday, during a meeting with Libyan defence minister Abu Bakr Yunis Jaber, who was in Moscow for several days. Although Russian media have speculated that the deal will contain fighter planes, tanks and anti-air missiles, the Russian government is remaining silent, hinting only that it is "not just small arms".

The deal was announced at a meeting with Vladimir Grodetsky, the director of Izhmash, a small-arms manufacturer that constructs the famous Kalashnikov rifle. Grodetsky wished to thank Putin for securing the deal, the sales of which, he said, would keep one of its plants going for two years.

Russia already has five arms deals with Libya.

Have an opinion on this story? Share it!

Sources

"Russia announces Libya arms deal worth $1.8bn" — BBC News Online, 30 January, 2010
Vladimir Soldatkin, Michael Roddy. "Libya, Russia agree $1.8 billion arms deal: Putin" — Reuters, 30 January, 2010
"Russia signs €1.3 billion arms contract with Libya" — AP, 30 January, 2010

Share this:

This page is archived, and is no longer publicly editable.

Articles presented on Wikinews reflect the specific time at which they were written and published, and do not attempt to encompass events or knowledge which occur or become known after their publication.

Got a correction? Add the template {{editprotected}} to the talk page along with your corrections, and it will be brought to the attention of the administrators.

Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections.

Note that some listed sources or external links may no longer be available online due to age.

This page is archived, and is no longer publicly editable.

Articles presented on Wikinews reflect the specific time at which they were written and published, and do not attempt to encompass events or knowledge which occur or become known after their publication.

Got a correction? Add the template {{editprotected}} to the talk page along with your corrections, and it will be brought to the attention of the administrators.

Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections.

Note that some listed sources or external links may no longer be available online due to age.