Three times Iran's annual defence budget

[Payman Arabshahi <payman@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Just for tanks ...

Who is rearming and why?

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France competes for $6 billion Saudi tanks contract
  	  				 
	RIYADH, Dec. 21 (UPI) -- Saudi Arabia and France have been in  
negotiations for two months on the possible supply of up to 300 tanks to 
the Saudi army, a French diplomat said Saturday. 
	``Negotiations started in October,'' Hubert de La Fortelle, the  
French ambassador to the kingdom, told reporters in the Saudi capital, 
Riyadh. He added that talks had started in Riyadh and may alternate with 
Paris. 
	Asked how many tanks are being considered, he said,``probably up to  
300 as we hope we can replace the old French tanks.'' 
	France supplied AMX-30 tanks to the Saudis more than two decades ago  
and hopes to replace them with its new model Leclerc. 
	The Leclerc, which was tested by the Saudis more than a year ago in  
the south of the kingdom, is competing with the British Challenger, 
which went through tests last summer and to some extent with the U.S. 
MI/A2 Abrams. 
	``The Americans are theoretically in the competition,'' one industry  
source said, (but) ``they have got enough contracts from the Saudis 
already and it is time to reward other allies and strike a balance,'' he 
added. 
	American companies have won contracts in the desert kingdom worth up  
to $16 billion in recent years. 
	Riyadh is adopting a strategy of diversifying its sources of weapons,  
according to defense analysts. 
	``The big question is whether the Saudis will change their undeclared  
policy of freezing arms purchases as a way of curbing their spending or 
not?,'' an economist said. 
	The deal could be worth an estimated $6 billion.  
	The Saudis, who paid some $50 billion to help drive the Iraqi army  
out of Kuwait in 1991, are undergoing an economic reform program that 
calls among other things for curtailing government spending. 
	``It is a question of priorities,'' La Fortelle said. ``Is defense a  
high priority or social services?''