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LATIN AMERICA |
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Peru
To Purchase Chinese Tanks and Brazilian
Fighter Planes
LIMA -
Peruvian president Alan García defended his
government’s decision to purchase Chinese
tanks and Brazilian fighter planes just a
few weeks after accusing Chile of an arms
race and proposing an initiative to limit
military expenditure in the region.
García who presented his anti arms
initiative to the Union of South American
Nations, Unasur, argued that the purchase of
Chinese tanks is not incoherent with his
country’s policy, since it is only geared to
replenish an obsolete military arsenal.
“This does not contradict our commitment to
stop an arms race in the region because Peru
last purchased Russian T 55 tanks back in
the late sixties, and they needed upgrading,
and it was decided to decommission them”,
said García.
“We are compensating that with a dissuasive
instrument because we want Peru to be
defended”, added the Peruvian president.
Peru showed five Chinese built MBT-2000
during a recent military parade. The García
administration has said the operation is
government to government but refused to
reveal the number of units involved.
“Buying Chinese tanks was the right
decision: they have an attractive price for
Peru and modern technology. Thanks to
President Hu Jintao we’ve managed a
significant drop not in the price but in the
down-payment and instalments” said García.
Peruvian Prime Minister Javier Velasquez
also insisted it was not an arms race: "it's
about equipment replacement -- not about
entering an incessant arms race".
Peru said Super Tucano planes it is buying
from Brazil's Embraer would be used to
combat cocaine trafficking in remote parts
of the Andes and Amazon jungle.
Peru has questioned military hardware
purchases in the region and is particularly
concerned with the huge investment in the
Chilean Armed Forces.
Chile's armed forces have benefited from
years of windfall copper earnings due to a
law that entitles them to 10% of state
copper giant Codelco's sales. The government
has sent a bill to Congress that aims to
scrap the Codelco payment.
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