UK selling billions in arms to countries on the human rights blacklist

[tay]

A new government report reveals that Britain has approved more than £5 billion ($7.5 billion) worth of arms export licenses for countries on its own human rights blacklist.


A total of 3,298 outstanding arms export licenses, valued at £5.2 billion, have been granted to 28 nations listed as "Countries of Human Rights Concern" by the UK Foreign & Commonwealth Office.


Britain has approved export licenses to Libya for anti-riot shields, assault rifles shotguns, hand grenades, body armor, military helmets, submachine guns, military support vehicles and tear gas ammunition. It has also approved export to Saudi Arabia of sniper rifles and intelligence equipment — and export to Syria of body armor, military helmets and cryptographic software.


Other "countries of concern" that are set to benefit from UK arms exports are Afghanistan, China, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Russia, and Sri Lanka.




The Government would do well to acknowledge that there is an inherent conflict between strongly promoting arms exports to authoritarian regimes whilst strongly criticizing their lack of human rights at the same time,"


more: https://news.vice.com/article/the-u...s-on-the-human-rights-blacklist#ixzz3V9ODBwDJ

 

[SLM]

Right hand, meet left hand. Left, meet right.

 

[Blackleaf]

"Mine is not to reason why, mine is to sell and buy." - Del Boy

(With apologies to Rudyard Kipling)

 

[taxslave]

Money talks.

 

[Blackleaf]

Money talks.

 

[Cliffy]

Yup, money talks and the poor get killed. I doubt Canada is less guilty of supplying the "enemy". Yankyland's economy is based on the military/industrial complex to the tune of about 80%. None of these counties' economies would be solvent if it were not for the production of weapons of mass destruction. War is a must to maintain our "lifestyle". After all, there is no shortage of people in third world countries to kill and exploit for fun and profit. Britain invented this game centuries ago.

 

[Blackleaf]

Britain invented this game centuries ago.

Where's your evidence for this?

 

[Cliffy]

Where's your evidence for this?

I suppose the Briddish Empire was built on the export of Bangers and Mash?

 

[Tecumsehsbones]

I suppose the Briddish Empire was built on the export of Bangers and Mash?

Actually, it was built on the export of finished industrial products (including, but hardly limited to weapons) and the import of raw materials and luxury goods. Well, that and some opium trade.