Tweet
AZERBAIJAN PROTESTS AGAINST 'MISSILE SUPPLIES' TO ARMENIA
http://asbarez.com/111349/azerbaijan-protests-against-%E2%80%98missile-supplies%E2%80%99-to-armenia/
Thursday, July 11th, 2013
MILAN (missile dŽinfanterie leger antichar) anti-tank guided missile
system.
YEREVAN (RFE/RL)-Azerbaijan has reportedly protested to France and
Germany against the apparent acquisition by Armenia's armed forces
of anti-tank missiles jointly developed by the two NATO member states.
The complaint reported by the Azerbaijani news agency APA on Thursday
stems from a photograph of the MILAN anti-tank system that was posted
late last month on Razm.info, an Armenian news website specializing
in defense and security. The online publication said the picture was
taken last year during an exhibition at Armenia's Defense Ministry
that featured weapons manufactured or modernized by Armenian companies.
It said the French-German guided missiles produced since the early
1970s were upgraded with Armenian-made electronic devices. Razm.info
called the Armenian army's possession of MILANs a "serious
development." No further details were reported.
Azerbaijani news agencies were quick to pick up the report. Citing
unnamed military sources, APA said that the Azerbaijani authorities
have demanded that the French and German embassies in Baku explain
"how those systems ended up in Armenia."
France's ambassador to Azerbaijan, Pascal Meunier, told reporters
in Baku last week that the French government is "investigating the
credibility of that information." He said French or German arms sales
to Armenia are "very unlikely" because they would violate a Western
embargo on arms deliveries to the parties of the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict.
MILAN's current principal manufacturer is the Euromissile consortium
based in France. The missile systems originally designed by French
and German companies in the 1960s are also license-built by several
other NATO member states as well as India. They have been in service
in over 40 countries.
The Armenian Defense Ministry declined to confirm or refute the MILAN
acquisition on Thursday. The ministry spokesman, Artsrun Hovannisian,
told RFE/RL's Armenian service only that Armenia is continuing to
"develop our defense capability."
Speaking to journalists last December, the commander of Karabakh's
Armenia-backed army, General Movses Hakobian, listed anti-tank rockets
among new weapons which he said were supplied to his forces in 2011
and 2012. He did not elaborate on their type and origin.
The news of Armenia's purported possession of MILAN came just
days after it emerged that Russia has begun supplying roughly $1
billion worth of new military hardware to Azerbaijan. According to
the Russian media, the arms consignment purchased by Baku includes
more than 90 battle tanks. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said
at an ensuing military parade that his country will continue buying
weapons to force the Armenians to give up control over Karabakh and
surrounding territories.
http://asbarez.com/111349/azerbaijan-protests-against-%E2%80%98missile-supplies%E2%80%99-to-armenia/
Thursday, July 11th, 2013
MILAN (missile dŽinfanterie leger antichar) anti-tank guided missile
system.
YEREVAN (RFE/RL)-Azerbaijan has reportedly protested to France and
Germany against the apparent acquisition by Armenia's armed forces
of anti-tank missiles jointly developed by the two NATO member states.
The complaint reported by the Azerbaijani news agency APA on Thursday
stems from a photograph of the MILAN anti-tank system that was posted
late last month on Razm.info, an Armenian news website specializing
in defense and security. The online publication said the picture was
taken last year during an exhibition at Armenia's Defense Ministry
that featured weapons manufactured or modernized by Armenian companies.
It said the French-German guided missiles produced since the early
1970s were upgraded with Armenian-made electronic devices. Razm.info
called the Armenian army's possession of MILANs a "serious
development." No further details were reported.
Azerbaijani news agencies were quick to pick up the report. Citing
unnamed military sources, APA said that the Azerbaijani authorities
have demanded that the French and German embassies in Baku explain
"how those systems ended up in Armenia."
France's ambassador to Azerbaijan, Pascal Meunier, told reporters
in Baku last week that the French government is "investigating the
credibility of that information." He said French or German arms sales
to Armenia are "very unlikely" because they would violate a Western
embargo on arms deliveries to the parties of the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict.
MILAN's current principal manufacturer is the Euromissile consortium
based in France. The missile systems originally designed by French
and German companies in the 1960s are also license-built by several
other NATO member states as well as India. They have been in service
in over 40 countries.
The Armenian Defense Ministry declined to confirm or refute the MILAN
acquisition on Thursday. The ministry spokesman, Artsrun Hovannisian,
told RFE/RL's Armenian service only that Armenia is continuing to
"develop our defense capability."
Speaking to journalists last December, the commander of Karabakh's
Armenia-backed army, General Movses Hakobian, listed anti-tank rockets
among new weapons which he said were supplied to his forces in 2011
and 2012. He did not elaborate on their type and origin.
The news of Armenia's purported possession of MILAN came just
days after it emerged that Russia has begun supplying roughly $1
billion worth of new military hardware to Azerbaijan. According to
the Russian media, the arms consignment purchased by Baku includes
more than 90 battle tanks. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said
at an ensuing military parade that his country will continue buying
weapons to force the Armenians to give up control over Karabakh and
surrounding territories.