Article: Syria arms imports surge thanks to Russia

Syria imported nearly six times more weapons in 2007-2011 than in the previous five-year period, with Russia accounting for 72 percent of the arms supplies to President Bashar Assad's regime, an international research institute said Monday.

The report on global arms transfers by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute highlighted how Moscow continues to provide Syria with weapons even as the U.S., the European Union and others impose arms embargoes due to the regime's violent crackdown on protesters.
 
Maybe I missed it in the article, but where would the other 28% of weapons be coming from?

Globally, the report showed conventional weapons transfers jumped 24 percent in 2007-2011, with the U.S. remaining the No. 1 weapons exporter, followed by Russia, Germany, France and Britain.

India, South Korea, Pakistan, China and Singapore were the five largest recipients of arms.
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Which is more of a crime, selling weapons, or buying them?
 
eltherza said:
Maybe I missed it in the article, but where would the other 28% of weapons be coming from?



Which is more of a crime, selling weapons, or buying them?
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Neither actually. It's a business like any other business but the US for instance can arm bahrain, saudi arabia and so on without issues so i don't get why the russians should avoid arming countries the west doesn't like.

Look at egypt the US have armed egypt very well and they do not even know if the new power in egypt will be good or not. The US armed the taliban as well.

Have a look at this and tell me why it is any different to russia selling to syria willy. I am hoping you also lose your speech for this but i somehow think you will find a way to excuse it.

The Obama administration is pushing to close an arms deal with Bahrain, despite the government's nearly year-long crackdown against protesters and recent steps to block American NGOs from operating in the island kingdom.

A previous arms sale was suspended late last year after fierce opposition from human rights groups and members of Congress. But the White House is now taking advantage of a legal loophole to push forward a separate deal without congressional approval.
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http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2012/02/201221154429600105.html

marine1 said:
Now we know why Russia supports these lunatics.
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Why? Can you tell us why the US are supporting the bahrain lunatics please.
 
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killadoob said:
Neither actually. It's a business like any other business but the US for instance can arm bahrain, saudi arabia and so on without issues so i don't get why the russians should avoid arming countries the west doesn't like.

Look at egypt the US have armed egypt very well and they do not even know if the new power in egypt will be good or not. The US armed the taliban as well.

Have a look at this and tell me why it is any different to russia selling to syria willy. I am hoping you also lose your speech for this but i somehow think you will find a way to excuse it.


http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2012/02/201221154429600105.html



Why? Can you tell us why the US are supporting the Bahrain lunatics please.
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Is Bahrain committed in destroying their own civilian citizens with tanks like Syria is doing? Have Bahrain committed to wipe any other sovereign country of the face of the earth? Just more typical killa anti USA rhetoric BS.
 
wily me said:
Is Bahrain committed in destroying their own civilian citizens with tanks like Syria is doing? Have Bahrain committed to wipe any other sovereign country of the face of the earth? Just more typical killa anti USA rhetoric BS.
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Sorry no they are not, they called the saudi tanks in to do it, same thing though. As usual though the US can sell arms to dictators who kill their own people but not the russians :D.

No idea why that is anti US, the reality is russia and the US both support and arm bad people but for some reason it is not acceptable for russia to do it but fine for the US. Another double standard. No idea why my post was anti US. I just posted a story showing the good guys selling arms to the bad guys to point out that even the so called good guys arm bad dictators.

May 14, Saudi forces continued their take over of Bahrain by sending tanks to take the island city of Sitra.

For the past couple of weeks, Bahraini forces, backed up by Saudi troops have been flattening Shia Mosques. The majority of the people of Bahrain are Shia Muslim. The royal family is not.

Since February the people have been truly peacefully protesting their government. Saudi forces invaded Bahrain in March, to help the non-Shia royal family put down the peaceful protesters.

Protesters say that since it is obvious the West isn’t going to help them, they are forced to start taking military action against the Saudis and the royal family.
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Russia has always been Syrias main arms supplier, so not sure whats news here.
I suppose maybe the quantity - Syria is broke, wonder how they paid for the weapons?
 
Willing seller, willing buyer. The Russians and Chinese are supplying weapons to Sudan as well.
 
za1 said:
Russia has always been Syrias main arms supplier, so not sure whats news here.
I suppose maybe the quantity - Syria is broke, wonder how they paid for the weapons?
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Isn't the US broke? wonder how they get their weapons?
 
Garyvdh said:
Yeah, let's just dismiss the lives of 8,000 people with a convenient wave of the hand.
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Or the signing of a check, are weapon manufacturers responsible for who the sell weapons to? Russian and Chinese firms sell weapons to these despots because they obviously do not fear the public/social fallout related to supporting these guys.

If China or Russia's government were supplying the weapons it would be a different story.
 
Fudzy said:
Or the signing of a check, are weapon manufacturers responsible for who the sell weapons to? Russian and Chinese firms sell weapons to these despots because they obviously do not fear the public/social fallout related to supporting these guys.

If China or Russia's government were supplying the weapons it would be a different story.
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You think those government's don't know who their firms are selling arms to?
 
Garyvdh said:
Yeah, let's just dismiss the lives of 8,000 people with a convenient wave of the hand.
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You seem to be able to dismiss the thousands and thousands of innocent lives from western bombing in afghanistan, iraq and libya.

Why you so concerned about civilians now gary? Should i say casualties of war as you guys say.
 
killadoob said:
You seem to be able to dismiss the thousands and thousands of innocent lives from western bombing in afghanistan, iraq and libya.
Why you so concerned about civilians now gary? Should i say casualties of war as you guys say.
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Those "innocent people" that you refer to had the chance to do something about terrorists, suicide bombers and radicals living amongst them.
But they chose not to. They tolerated them, supported them and even joined them.
Sorry, but I find it hard to feel sympathy for such people.
 
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