BERLIN HAS come under fire for reportedly green-lighting the multibillion-dollar sale of tanks to Saudi Arabia, denying it marks a shift in restrictive rules for German arms exports.
The German government has declined to comment officially on the deal, saying all weapons exports are controlled by the federal security council and subject to strict confidentiality.
Reports from Saudi Arabia say the purchase of 44 “Leopard 2” tanks is part of a €65 billion defence spend by the Gulf State and contains an option for delivery of up to 200 German tanks.
During a heated Bundestag debate yesterday, opposition politicians said it was immoral for Germany to provide military assistance to Saudi Arabia, particularly as it has sent forces to put down the rebellion in Bahrain.
Social Democratic Party deputy parliamentary leader Gernot Erler said the reported deal reflected “a frightening lack of judgment”.
The German government paid only “lip service to supporting democratic movements in the Arab world”, he added.
Jürgen Trittin, co-parliamentary leader of the Green Party, said it was unacceptable that Berlin “supported despots”. “Such decisions cannot be taken at a time when people are fighting for democracy in the Arab world,” he said. Mr Trittin dismissed suggestions from the government bench that Saudi Arabia was entitled to arm itself against a possible threat from Iran. “The opposite is the case. You are giving Tehran an excuse to arm itself,” he said.
Government sources have insisted the deal does not represent a shift in Berlin’s foreign policy priorities or in its restrictive arms export provisions.
That Israel had not protested at the sale reflected the changing geo-political situation in the Middle East, a source said. "Everyone should understand that the Israeli government is in agreement," the source told the Süddeutsche Zeitungdaily. "Otherwise, there would have been an official protest."
Left Party parliamentary leader Gregor Gysi expressed outrage over the reported deal. “What kind of country is Saudi Arabia? There are no elections, no legal opposition, there’s the death penalty, torture and public floggings. And you sell them weapons?”
Munich company Krauss-Maffei Wegmann has produced more than 3,000 of its popular Leopard 2 tanks, delivering them to countries from Canada to Singapore.
Germany is the world’s third-largest arms exporter after the US and Russia.