Iraq to buy M1A1 tanks

www.defenseindustrydaily.com...

On July 31/08, the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency announced [PDF] Iraq’s formal request to buy M1 Abrams tanks, well as the associated vehicles, equipment and services required to keep these tanks in the field. It is likely that the tanks themselves will be transferred from US stocks, but this has not been verified. With this purchase, Iraq will become the 4th M1 Abrams operator in the region, joining Egypt (M1A1s), Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia (M1A2-SEP variant).

140 M1A1M tanks to be bought - based upon the M1A1-SA , they seem to be a cross between the A1 and the TUSK versions , very lethel with DU ammo load and DU armour.

i dont think we should give them any of our technology. i would not be surprised if all of this apparent co-operation is actually a ruse to give us a false sense of security. i would not at all be surprised if, after they acquire some of our technology, they use it against us. i would not at all be surprised if they attacked us while we were in the middle of the coming war with iran.

maybe its the pessimist in me, but i dont see the logic in providing potent miltary technology to the very country we help to destroy.

and before you even bother, yes, i am aware the US provided for and financed much of japans initial post-ww2 rebuilding. but iraq is not japan; the mindest of the cultures are entirely different. they are apples and oranges, and as such, you can not use one to prove the other.

[edit on 8/6/2008 by prototism]

Didn't we do this 0once before, I think we did. What happened last time we sold our stuff ti Iraq. O that's right Saddam became a nutjob, attacked Iran for a while then started shaking swoeds, and rilefs at us. In fact we did something like it in Afganistan, we sold the Tally_band a bunch of stuff taught them to use it, and then what happened? O yea the flew three B-737's into Three buildings killing hundreds!!!
I wish we would have leardned but I'd quess not.

reply to post by Harlequin


Sounds like RR is governing from the grave!
1980's anybody?

Hmmm, I wonder who the advisors were who suggested ordering 140 US built tanks

I must be getting a bit sceptical, but my Paddy-senses are detecting a bit of nudging from the US advisory teams with a potential financial windfall to the US defence contracts.

(Such a synical little man, aren't I?)

Exactly...the words "kickback" are springing to mind.Me senses the US able to get money back on all those M1A1s left around gaining dust..
Would of thought that they would have been better value being russian/ukranian T-80s etc. However seems like the US is trying to equip the Iraqi forces lock stock and barrel a la US forces.

reply to post by Harlequin


all we need now are a few planes
and we have Iran 2.0 but more uptodate

That's not all Iraq might purchase from the US, as the OPs article states. I saw this a few days ago and apparently they are willing to spend major petro Dollars on rebuilding their military. If this deal goes through the next step would be IADS and fast jets. Although the US might be more reluctant to sell that kind of hardware.

The Pentagon said Friday it has notified Congress of proposed military sales to Iraq valued at more than nine billion dollars, including helicopters, tanks and armored vehicles.

The biggest proposed sale was for 392 Light Armored Vehicles, radios and anti-tank weapons at an estimated cost of three billion dollars, the Defense Security and Cooperation Agency said.

Congress also was notified of a possible sale of 140 upgraded M1A1 Abrams tanks as well as armored Humvees, tracked logistics vehicles, armored ambulances, vehicles to carry shelters and command posts, and trucks to transport heavy equipment.

It was valued at 2.16 billion dollars.

Source

[edit on 6-8-2008 by WestPoint23]

heres a thought - refurb and upgrade the M1A1`s allready in iraq to save money bringing them back?

OF course they want M1s. Why would they not? It has been show cased kicking butt for the last 20 years in that area.

They were going to leave the tanks anyway it is cheaper to keep them in storage over there. Suadi arabia has long house USA military hardware.

Why would they buy russian? We are talking battled tested track record and actually produced in large #s main battle tank. Which like it or not has shown to dominate its competition.

reply to post by Harlequin


Not possible, the American Abrams tanks contains the secretive armor that the export versions don't have. Its better to give the Iraqis Abrams export version that we sold to the Egyptians. Alliances can suddenly shift in a few years if something happens.

reply to post by deltaboy




hmmm i know the Egyptian M1A1 doesn`t have the DU armour of the US kit (thats the super secret squirrel your talking about) but i do think the saudi version has it - it has the TUSK ERA for sure though

Screw the Abrams, they should opt for the Leo 2A6's.. haha, and then we might have a problem.

Yeah, I don't see why Iraq wouldn't jump at these opportunities to acquire high grade equipment. They are now allies (for the most part) with the most powerful military industry in the world. If I were the leaders of a country that just had most of my military destroyed and could make deals like this I would definitely jump at the offer. It's not something you can really argue against in all reality. Both the US and Iraq stand to benefit. Having 140+ Abrams is quite a formidable force to be dealt with.

thats just stupid. to sell your own tanks too the enemys. pfft worst tactic. more of your troops will die and such.

reply to post by Maxell


You should read the news some time - they're not the enemy.

I agree completely, they're not the enemy, and more importantly they're a new government facing the prospect of defending their borders for the first time. I'd much rather they buy from us rather than competing countries that did absolutely nothing to oust Saddam Hussein and restructure the country. However, whether the M1A1 is the proper hardware to be investing in right now is another story. I think the most likely battlefield in Iraq's future is in its own cities where the M1A1 is not ideally suited. If I were in Iraq's position reliable submachine guns, body armor, and lots and lots of training would be my first priority as well as IED defusing equipment and training.

reply to post by Maxell


Iraq isnt our enemy. The terrorist groups operating in Iraq are. I am an advisor here but even I cant believe we are selling them the M1...not because I dont trust them with it...but because the way they operate there is no way they will be able to maintain them. I foresee huge contracts given to the first company to round up all the US Army M1 Mechanics getting out.

Originally posted by Harlequin
heres a thought - refurb and upgrade the M1A1`s allready in iraq to save money bringing them back?

I watched them refurbing the Abrams (on telly of course - never get to see any cool stuff in real life any more! ).

Any who they stopped making any new M1A1's a while ago - they said, but they continually refurb and update. The actual 'tank' parts if that makes sense are no longer made, I suppose they have a few mothballed - the M1A1 is very modular and designed very well you can swap components very easily for a tank.

They had one hell of a set up to do the work as well, I think there was only one site, I saw em go through the entire process, strip dows, hoisted the thing vertical shot blasted it back to bear metal and then paint and then they basically make em selves a new tank from a mix of refurbed and new parts.

So they would be getting refurbed ones any how... And if they were to have the ones already over there they would likely have to go back to the US and then sent back again, they wont save any on postage! I suppose they could just have them in the condidtion they are already in - stick a new airfreshener in and a bit of turtle wax,

They built over 8000 M1/M1A1 for the US about 5000 of them being M1A1s and since they are only upgraded a total of around 600 of the M1(the orginal 105mm gun version) to M1A2 would suggest they consider a lot of there fleet is surplus.

Don't know if the M1A2 SEP upgrades were done to M1A2s or M1s