BAE and the Suadi prince

[Clippy]

It's the clash of cultures. In my younger years I travelled extensively throughout the Middle East and the Arab culture is one of bartering, bargaining and sweetners.

However, in the West, it opens the door to bribary and unfair competition and hence it is illegal.

This isn't a cultural thing, it's a money thing.

Wherever there are large sums of money involved you will always have some form of sweetner, backhanders, jolies, bribes etc.

Call 'em what you want, but it's the way business works.

[wendigo100]

Hasn't business always been conducted this way? I think you would have to be very naive to think otherwise.

Why can't they let it lie? I just hope the Guardian and the BBC are happy when BAE lose the deal and 5,000 skilled UK employee's lose their jobs.

I draw your attention to this, from the Sunday Times in 2006:

Sleaze helped to propel Tony Blair to power nine years ago and sleaze will help to end his political career, sooner rather than later.

The prime minister came to office having successfully exploited voters’ revulsion over a “degenerate” Tory government which they saw as sleazy and divided.

“Sleaze has become the hallmark of the dying days of this administration,” Blair said before the 1997 election. “(we will be) whiter than white, tough on sleaze, tough on the causes of sleaze”.

BAE and the Saudi prince aren't the villains here, the real villain is the pious and sanctamonious **** above, who has presided over a government that is worse than the one they replaced.

[Bluebird]

BAE and the Saudi prince aren't the villains here, the real villain is the pious and sanctamonious **** above, who has presided over a government that is worse than the one they replaced.

you said it...

[Sysman]

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I draw your attention to this, from the Sunday Times in 2006:BAE and the Saudi prince aren't the villains here, the real villain is the pious and sanctamonious **** above, who has presided over a government that is worse than the one they replaced.

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[Lambros]

I didn't know The Carlyle Group were also involved, nuff said, I think!

[TinTin]

Really!

Last I heard is that the US Congress is about to launch an investigation into BAE's conduct. Sour grapes possibly? And how do their esteemed companies like Boeing, McDonnell Douglas etc operate may we ask? I suggest they ask the Saudi Ambassador to the US as a witness, hang on that's the guy that took the (alleged) bribes!

[Stan]

Just because it happens doesn't make it right.

[wendigo100]

Just because it happens doesn't make it right.

Quite true, but neither is hypocrisy.

[Kyajae]

Quite true, but neither is hypocrisy.

The government's attempt to cover up the saudi episode is using the fact that the contract, originally drawn up by the Thatcher Govt, had a specific confidentiality clause in it, insisted on by the saudis, that prevented all parties disclosing any details about the internal machinations of the agreement. This was very useful not only to Britain, in terms of future arms trades, but also to Mark Thatcher who happened to be making a name for himself in that part of the world at the time. Nothing more helpful than clauses that might help lubricate other potential business deals.

Let's not also forget that when it comes to arms trading, corruption is, and has to be, rife in order to move the wheels. Remember the Matrix Churchill directors in the Iraq Supergun Affair, who were prosecuted by Custom & Excise in 1992 for supplying machine parts "illegally"? Only for it to finally come out in court that the then Tory Government had been aware of what what going on and that the 2 directors had been working on behalf of the security services. Several Ministers tried to issue Public Interest Immunity Certificates to prevent the disclosure of the information that would have proved the directors' innocence. It all then led to the Scott Enquiry. If this information had not been known to the courts, the then Tory government would have had both of these directors hung out to dry.

Arms dealing is a very murky world indeed.

[Rantor]

Arms dealing is a very murky world indeed.

I went through a phase a few yrs ago when I'd tell people I was an Arms Dealer rather than an IT uberspod. If you can keep it up it is a fantastic way to wind some deserving people up.