BAE AGM can't hide from difficult questions and disruptions

Supporters from Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT) turned out in force to shame arms giant BAE Systems at their Annual General Meeting AGM), accusing it of supporting repressive regimes through arms sales and unethical business practices. Acute questioning combined with high farce during the two hour meeting culminated in the attempted presentation of "Whitewasher of the year award to BAE Chairman, Dick Olver.

All this despite the AGM's relocation from central London to Farnborough in Hampshire, a venue easily accessible to BAE employees in the area but not so convenient for shareholders and media. The FIVE venue is owned by ADS, the trade body of the arms industry, suggesting a retreat from more public spaces where arms dealers have faced consistent protests.

Protesters ridiculed Dick Olver's claims that BAE was "one of the leading and most ethical companies." A large contingent of security staff evicted thirteen people who expressed scorn and anger at the way the Chairman and CEO Ian King repeatedly evaded answering questions put to them about BAE's policies and practices.

Questions focused on BAE's weapons sales to and relationship with authoritarian governments, including Bahrain, Libya and Saudi Arabia. There was particular focus on Saudi Arabia, the largest customer for UK weaponry, where BAE has sold fighter jets, including the Eurofighter Typhoon, Tactica armoured personnel vehicles and MBDA Brimstone, Storm Shadow and Mistral missiles. Dick Olver was visibly riled when asked whether BAE had contingency plans for protests in Saudi Arabia and other repressive regimes where it does significant business.

CAAT spokesperson Anne-Marie O'Reilly said:

We had a great turnout today and were able to put the BAE Chair and CEO on the spot with our questions. BAE is so keen to whitewash its image, that it moved its Annual General Meeting from a prestigious venue in Westminster back to home turf in Farnborough.

But we were there to challenge its weapons sales which boost human rights abusing regimes like Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. We ridiculed the chairman's claims that doing the right thing "is becoming an almost subconscious response" by presenting him with a "Whitewasher of the Year" award.

The cost of BAE's business is counted in lives lost and that's why over forty campaigners made sure its AGM could not be a matter of business as usual.

ENDS

NOTES

1. BAE Systems is one of the world's largest arms producers. It makes fighter aircraft, warships, tanks, armoured vehicles, artillery systems, missiles, munitions and much more. In 2012, company sales reached £17.8 billion, a 7 per cent fall from 2011 (sales reached a high of £22.3 billion in 2010). Non-US and non-UK sales increased to £11.2. billion in 2012, compared to £4.8 billion in 2011. BAE has military customers in over 100 countries, with about 95 per cent of sales being military. Its focus is on increasing sales to the Middle East, notably to Oman and United Arab Emirates, and continuing to supply Eurofighters and other arms to the Saudi Arabia regime.
2. Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT) works to end the international arms trade. The arms business has a devastating impact on human rights and society and damages economic development. Large-scale military procurement and arms exports only reinforce a militaristic approach to international problems. In 2012, CAAT was awarded a Right Livelihood Award, the “Alternative Nobel Prize” for its “innovative and effective campaigning against the arms trade”.

UK urges more arms sales to Bahrain as prince visits Counter Terror Expo

A British arms sales team from United Kingdom Trade & Investment Defence & Security Organisation(UKTI DSO) has been promoting weapons exports to Bahrain, even as the repressive Gulf state cracks down on civilian protest. A few days before, a son of the ruler, who is a senior commander in Bahrain's Royal Guard, toured Counter Terror Expo in London seeking the latest technologies to employ against democracy protesters.

UKTI DSO Head Richard Paniguian and British Defence Attache Commodore Christopher Murray met with the Bahrain Minister for Defence Affairs, Lieutenant General Dr. Shaikh Mohammed bin Abdullah Al Khalifa, in Manama on 29 April to discuss “bilateral military cooperation”. Over the five years 2008-12, the UK has licensed almost £13 million worth of weapons to Bahrain, including over £4 million worth of small arms, despite its dire human rights record and brutal suppression of protest.

On 25 April, Prince and Royal Guard Commander, Lieutenant Colonel Shaikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa, visited Counter Terror Expo 2013 in London. In an official statement he stressed the importance of “new technologies to contain the detrimental repercussions of terrorism.”

In 2012 a human rights group alleged that the prince was "personally engaged" in beating, flogging and kicking pro-democracy protestors in April 2011. Documentation describes how Sheikh Nasser, who is the president of the Bahrain Olympic Committee, launched "a punitive campaign to repress Bahraini athletes who had demonstrated their support [for] the peaceful pro-democracy movement." The prince denied the allegations. The UN Rapporteur on Torture has had a planned visit to Bahrain indefinitely postponed by the Bahrain government.

Kaye Stearman from CAAT said:

UK efforts to sell weapons to this abusive regime seem undimmed by events. First, a member of Bahrain's ruling family visits London to shop for the latest technologies to monitor and suppress citizens who want to exercise the basic human rights which the UK government says that it supports.

A few days later the head of the UK government's arms sales unit flies to Manama to meet another member of this same ruling family to persuade them to buy even even more UK weaponry. In another few months the red carpet will be rolled out for a Bahrain delegation to visit the DSEI arms fair. We should stop selling Bahrain arms and should tell their ruling family they are not welcome in the UK.

ENDS

NOTES

1. Bahrain is a long-established market for UK arms exports. In 2012 the UK licensed weaponry worth £4.6 million to Bahrain. The largest category by far was “small arms”, amounting to £4.2 million. A single licence, approved on 26 October 2012, amounted to £4.1 million, including 400 machine guns. In addition, there were licences totalling over £3.3 million for dual use items, of which over £3.2 million was for “telecommunications and information security” which could be used to monitor civilians.
2. UK Trade & Investment Defence & Security Organisation(UKTI DSO) is the government's arms sales unit, based in the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS). Richard Paniguian has been its head since its establishment in 2008.
3. Prior to 2011, the government listed Bahrain as a key market for UK arms exports. UKTI DSO supported the Bahrain International Airshow 2010, where it organised an outdoor event and UK armed forces have been used in support of sales efforts, demonstrating arms to the Royal Bahrain Artillery. Bahrain was invited to attend the Farnborough Airshow in 2010 and 2012 Defence and Security Equipment International (DSEi) in 2009 and 2011.
4. The UK government announced that it revoked 44 military licences in February and March 2011 to Bahrain, at the beginning of the Arab Spring protests. However, many licences remained in place and by June 2011 military exports had resumed. On 10 October 2012 the UK signed a new defence agreement with Bahrain.
5. The report of the Foreign Affairs Committee, issued on 17 October 2012, noted that Bahrain was not listed as a "country of concern" by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office annual Human Rights Report despite its appalling human rights record and suppression of democratic protest and recommended that it be classified as such.
6. Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT) works to end the international arms trade. The arms business has a devastating impact on human rights and society and damages economic development. Large-scale military procurement and arms exports only reinforce a militaristic approach to international problems. In 2012, CAAT was awarded a Right Livelihood Award, the “Alternative Nobel Prize” for its “innovative and effective campaigning against the arms trade”.

UAE State visit continues arms sales drive to repressive Gulf regime

Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT) has condemned the UK government's arms export drive to the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Data recently released shows that in 2012 the UK licensed weaponry worth £26.2 million to the authoritarian UAE despite their lack of human rights and democratic process. The new data comes on the eve of a state visit to the UK by the ruler of the UAE, Sheikh Khalifa, on 30 April-1 May.

The UK government and BAE Systems are currently promoting the sale of 60 Eurofighter Typhoon jets to the UAE, in a sale potentially worth over £3 billion, which would dwarf previous weapons deals. In November 2012 David Cameron visited the UAE and Saudi Arabia to promote the fighter jet. During his visit he joined senior UAE military and political figures inspecting Typhoons at Al Minhad airbase and attended a trade fair in Abu Dhabi, with exhibits by arms giants BAE Systems and Rolls-Royce.

Kaye Stearman from CAAT said:

The eagerness of the UK government to pursue arms sales with authoritarian regimes in the Middle East leads them to ignore human rights abuses. This is especially true of the UAE where criticism of the ruling elite has been muted because of their wealth, power and influence in the region and the UK itself. The UK should not be selling weapons, whether small arms or fighter jets, to a repressive regime which cannot respect the basic human rights of its people.

Arms export data - UK arms exports to the UAE

The UAE has long been a major customer for UK arms exports. The government's arms sales unit, United Kingdom Trade & Investment Defence & Security Organisation (UKTI DSO), designates the UAE as a "priority market" for military and internal security equipment.

In 2012 the UK licensed weaponry worth £26.2 million to the UAE. The main items licensed fell in the categories: "other electronic equipment" - £8.4 million; small arms - £5.8 million; "aircraft, helicopters, drones" - £3.5 million; "armoured vehicles, tanks"- £2.2 million; and "target acquisition, weapons control systems" - £2 million. In addition, there were licences totalling over £1.1 billion for dual use items of "“telecommunications and information security".

In the final quarter of 2012, the UK issued licences covering weaponry worth over £7.7 million. This included £2.1 million for "other electronic equipment", £1.8 million for "armoured vehicles and tanks" and almost £1 million worth of small arms. There were also licences worth over £400 million for dual use items of "telecommunications and information security".

In the five years 2008-2012, the UK licensed arms worth over £157 million to the UAE, with electronic equipment worth £77 million at the top of the list. There were also substantial amounts of other military equipment and services, including £13.6 million of small arms, £10.7 million of "aircraft, helicopters and drones", £8.9 million of armoured vehicles and tanks, £5.3 million for "grenades, bombs, missiles, counter-measures", and £4.2 million for "target acquisition and weapon control systems".

In addition, the UK also licensed over £3 billion worth of "dual use" goods (which can be used in military or civilian purposes), including “information technology” which could be used against dissidents.

ENDS

NOTES

1. The UAE state visit, the first since 1989, will see the royal red carpet rolled out to greet Shaikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan and his entourage, which will include leading political and military figures. The stated aim of the visit is to consolidate political and military ties between the two countries. During his visit, Sheikh Khalifa will participate in a traditional carriage procession through Windsor to Windsor Castle for a state lunch hosted by the Queen. He will later meet with Prime Minister David Cameron at Downing Street.
2. The UAE has been criticised for its poor human rights record. A European Parliament resolution in October 2012 condemned the UAE for its "crackdown on human rights defenders and civil society activists". Seven human rights organisations, including Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, have expressed concerns about the detention and trial of 94 democracy activists, some of whom are alleged to have been tortured while in custody.
3. The UAE Minister for Foreign Affairs, Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, said: "The UAE is committed to further building and strengthening its bilateral relationship with the UK on all levels, with a particular focus on trade, regional and global security and education.".
4. The royal connection is often used to support arms exports. The visit of Sheikh Khalifa follows the 2010 state visit by The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh to the UAE in 2010. The UK Ambassador to UAE, Dominic Jermey, told the Khaleej Times: I can’t think of anywhere else in the world of a state visit being returned in such a short time, with the Queen’s visit here in 2010 and, if I may say so, a return match by Shaikh Khalifa only two-and-a-half years later... Defence, security, foreign policy and business will be at the heart of the visit, but first and foremost, this is a visit between two royal families, who value each other, so it is about enhancing the relationship between the UAE and UK. In March 2013, Prince Charles visited Oatar, Saudi Arabia and Oman - the latter two are major customers for UK arms.
5. In a question of 12 November 2012 on the defence industrial partnership agreed during the Prime Minister's visit to the UAE, Defence Secretary Philip Hammond replied: The core aim of the Prime Minister's visit was to further our long standing friendship with the United Arab Emirates (UAE). We are partners across a broad range of areas and are committed to maintaining tolerant, open and outward-looking societies. Both countries have created environments in which investments thrive and have invested significantly in each other's economies. During the visit, we agreed to develop our partnership by deepening our defence ties by: continuing to develop joint plans for the security of the UAE and wider Gulf region; establishing a defence industrial partnership centred on Typhoon and involving close collaboration between leading British and Emirate industrial companies and by growing UAE investment in the UK and UK investment in the UAE in a wide range of sectors including aerospace, communications and service ventures. (Hansard, 13 Novermber, Column 171W)
6. The UK arms export licensing process is carried out by the Export Control Organisation, based in the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills. The statistics for the fourth quarter of 2012 were published in the week of 21 April 2013. A more accessible, informative and searchable version of the database can be found on the CAAT website.
7. Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT) works to end the international arms trade. The arms business has a devastating impact on human rights and society and damages economic development. Large-scale military procurement and arms exports only reinforce a militaristic approach to international problems. In 2012, CAAT was awarded a Right Livelihood Award, the “Alternative Nobel Prize” for its “innovative and effective campaigning against the arms trade”.

Activists use Day of Action to tell government to cut military spending, not public services

Campaigners in London marked the third annual Global Day of Action on Military Spending (GDAMS) today (15 April) with a protest outside the Houses of Parliament against continuing high levels of military spending while cuts are implemented in health, education, welfare and other areas.

Protesters, from Campaign Against Arms Trade, CND, Disarm DSEi, Pax Christi and other organisations participated in the demonstration. A street theatre action “Play the budget right” saw a games show host introduce contestants seeking medical treatment and a university education instead win military equipment, symbolising the transfer of public resources into military spending, while an engineer who wants to use her skills to develop renewable energy is forced into working in arms production.

Over the day, protests and other actions took place in towns and cities across the world. In the UK they included actions in Coventry, Edinburgh, Liverpool, Oswestry and Wrexham. The best attended protest was an all-day blockade of Faslane nuclear naval base, near Glasgow, the home base for Trident submarines.

Throughout the day supporters mass tweeted the Treasury with their preferred spending priorities - @hmtreasury with #demilitarize.

Two important reports on military spending were issued to mark the day. The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) released data relating to military spending in 2012 which showed a small fall of 0.5% overall. However, the fall was mainly in western countries while spending had increased in other regions. China and Russia, the world's second and third largest military powers, increased military spending.

A report by the Transnational Institute and the Dutch Campaign Against Arms Trade looked at the disastrous effects of high military spending in the eurozone crisis. Guns, Debt and Corruption: Military spending and the EU crisis analysed the high levels of military spending in some of the most indebted countries, including Greece, Italy, Portugal and Spain, even as other government spending, wages and pensions were slashed.

Kaye Stearman of Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT) commented:

Despite the world financial crisis, it seems that military spending has only been marginally affected. When it comes to cutting spending, politicians prefer to cut health, education and social services, rather than military equipment. If governments were prepared to divert military spending into development of renewable energy we would have a world that is both cleaner and safer for everyone.

ENDS

NOTES

1. The Global Day of Action on Military Spending (GDAMS) is an international peace initiative. Jointly founded by the International Peace Bureau, based in Zurich, and the Institute of Policy Studies, in Washington, it has since grown to involve organisations and individuals in many countries. The first GDAMS was held on 12 April 2011.

2. Information on GDAMS in the UK, including the organisations involved, can be found here.

3. UK military expenditure stands at £39 billion a year. The UK government subsidises arms exports by £700 million annually.

4. Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT) in the UK works to end the international arms trade. The arms business has a devastating impact on human rights and society and damages economic development. Large-scale military procurement and arms exports only reinforce a militaristic approach to international problems Around 75% of CAAT's income is raised from individual supporters.

Day of action calls for military spending to be directed to meet human needs

"The UK spends £39 billion a year on the military and arms, while vital services in health, education, welfare and renewable energy are cut or under threat." This is the message that campaigners from 39 UK organisations will highlight on Monday 15 April, the Global Day of Action on Military Spending (GDAMS).

UK military spending is currently the fourth highest in the world. Campaigners are calling for an immediate shift in government policy and spending priorities, away from military spending and arms trade exports towards public services and sustainable energy.

The key demands include:

• redirect military spending and shift spending to meet social and environmental needs
• no replacement of Trident, the UK’s nuclear weapons system
• end the annual £700 million government subsidy of arms exports and redirect the funds towards renewable energy and energy-saving measures
• develop a clear programme of government action for spending, research and investment to build sustainable, common security at national and international levels.

Anne-Marie O'Reilly of Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT), said:

While our public services face drastic cuts, the government cannot continue to spend more than almost every other country in the world on weapons and war. The UK's military spending each year is enough to stop the cuts to the NHS twice over. Ordinary people know what our priorities are. Now it's time for the government to listen.

Actions

The Global Day of Action on Military Spending will see actions across the UK, including before the Houses of Parliament in London. Events will include:

London, 9am - Campaigners in London will hold a “Play the budget right” street theatre action outside Westminster to protest against the billions spent on the military and subsidising arms exports, while vital public services are cut back. Players seeking medical treatment, a school place or welfare services will instead win military equipment, symbolising the transfer of public resources into military spending.

London, 5pm - Public meeting in parliament with Bruce Kent, Caroline Lucas MP and others.

Coventry, 4pm-6pm - Silent protest outside General Dynamics factory, organised by Coventry RC Deanery Justice and Peace Group.

Edinburgh, 8.30am - Leafleting at Scottish parliament by Edinburgh Campaign Against Arms Trade.

Glasgow - An all-day blockade to Shut Down Faslane.

Liverpool, 12noon onwards - CND picket of Armed Forces Careers Information Office, 14 North John Street, Liverpool, L2.

Oswestry, 12noon-2pm - Stall and leafleting at Festival Square.

Wrexham, 9.30am-11am - Leafleting in Queens Square.

CAAT is encouraging supporters to mass tweet the Treasury with their preferred spending priorities - @hmtreasury with #demilitarize.

ENDS

NOTES

1. The Global Day of Action on Military Spending (GDAMS) is an international peace initiative. Jointly founded by the International Peace Bureau, based in Zurich, and the Institute of Policy Studies, in Washington, it has since grown to involve organisations and individuals in many countries. The first GDAMS was held on 12 April 2011.

2. Information on GDAMS in the UK, including the organisations involved, can be found here.

3. UK military expenditure stands at £39 billion a year. The UK government subsidises arms exports by £700 million annually.

4. The day will also see the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) release the latest data on global military expenditure. SIPRI is an independent institute which researches conflict, armaments, arms control and disarmament. It provides data, analysis and recommendations, including annual surveys of global military spending, arms sales and arms companies.

5. Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT) in the UK works to end the international arms trade. The arms business has a devastating impact on human rights and society and damages economic development. Large-scale military procurement and arms exports only reinforce a militaristic approach to international problems Around 75% of CAAT's income is raised from individual supporters.

Arms Trade Treaty could legitimise arms sales

Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT) believes the arms trade treaty being agreed at the United Nations today will be ineffective. A treaty will not reduce the arms trade or prevent exports to human rights violators. The treaty may set out regulations, but it also says states recognise “the legitimate political, security, economic and commercial interests … in the international trade in conventional arms.” This is the problem.

The treaty will not stop any of the arms exports of the world’s largest arms producing countries or arms companies. Countries such as the UK, the US, France and Russia will be able to continue selling to repressive regimes unhindered.

These UK-made Saudi vehicles were filmed entering Bahrain to help crush pro-democracy protests. The ATT will not stop the UK selling armoured vehicles to Saudi Arabia or other repressive regimes. (Still from video footage)

The UK government puts commercial interests at the centre of its arms export policy. It has a 150-strong arms sales unit and Prime Ministers make visits to Saudi Arabia and elsewhere pressing authoritarian rulers to buy UK weaponry.

Most of the treaty’s provisions are already incorporated in the UK’s export criteria and controls. The UK government ignores the spirit of these controls in favour of arms promotion. The Head of the Foreign Office’s Arms Export Policy Department has revealed that the Department has reassured countries in the Middle East that a treaty “would in effect implement criteria that are very similar to those we currently implement” and “would not add anything on top of that.” (Committee on Arms Export Controls, 19.12.12, Q136)

Ann Feltham, CAAT’s Parliamentary Coordinator, said: “This treaty legitimises the arms trade. If governments are serious about ending the trade in weaponry, with its dire consequences for peace and human rights, they should immediately stop promoting arms exports.”

ENDS

NOTES

1. Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT) works to end the international arms trade. The arms business has a devastating impact on human rights and society and damages economic development. Large-scale military procurement and arms exports only reinforce a militaristic approach to international problems. In 2012, CAAT was awarded a Right Livelihood Award, the “Alternative Nobel Prize” for its “innovative and effective campaigning against the arms trade”.
2. A detailed account of CAAT’s position on the Arms Trade Treaty can be found on CAAT’s website.
3. The UK government’s export promotion unit is the UK Trade and Investment Defence and Security Organisation.
4. The UK arms export licensing process is carried out by the Export Control Organisation, based in the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills. A more accessible, informative and searchable version of the database can be found on the CAAT website.

Prince Charles visit smoothing the way for arms sales to repressive Saudi regime

Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT) condemns the forthcoming official visit of Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia because it openly supports a deeply repressive and abusive regime and promotes the already strong military ties between the UK and Saudi Arabia. The visit comes two years after the Saudi Arabian National Guard sent British-made armoured personnel vehicles into Bahrain to support the suppression of protests there.

The first listed of the themes of the visit is the "military links between the Saudi and UK Armed Forces". It is likely that the visit has been added to the Prince's Middle East itinerary in an attempt to persuade the Saudi regime to finalise a contract for 48 Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft. Prime Minister David Cameron's trip in November 2012 failed to do this, the UK government probably believes the Saudis will be more impressed with a royal.

The UK sells more arms to Saudi Arabia than to any other country. Over the past five years the UK has licensed almost £4 billion worth of weaponry to Saudi Arabia and it wants to sell even more.

CAAT spokesperson, Kaye Stearman, said:

The BAE Eurofighter deal is still under discussion, the Serious Fraud Office is investigating a second Saudi arms deal and a parliamentary committee is undertaking a review of UK-Saudi relations. Added to this is the steady stream of news about human rights abuses and reports of unrest in Saudi Arabia. No wonder the Saudi rulers are feeling concerned – even insecure. The visit of Prince Charles is meant to reassure them that they still have the support of the UK government and that they should sign the Eurofighter Typhoon deal.

ENDS

NOTES

1. Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT) works to end the international arms trade. The arms business has a devastating impact on human rights and society and damages economic development. Large-scale military procurement and arms exports only reinforce a militaristic approach to international problems. In 2012, CAAT was awarded a Right Livelihood Award, the "Alternative Nobel Prize" for its "innovative and effective campaigning against the arms trade".
2. The visit is part of a nine-day tour of the Middle East, to include Jordan, Qatar and Oman, with three days in Saudi Arabia, visiting Riyadh and Jeddah. The official visit statement says that: The visit to Saudi Arabia will help to strengthen the United Kingdom’s bilateral relations with a key partner in the region, relations which are underpinned by the close personal friendship that exists between Their Royal Highnesses and the Saudi Royal Family. The themes of the visit include military links between the Saudi and UK Armed Forces, opportunities for women in Saudi society, education, faith, and commercial partnerships. While in Riyadh, Their Royal Highnesses will meet members of the Saudi parliament, known as the Majlis Ash-Shura, including the institution’s recently appointed first women members. The programme in Jeddah will include a visit to the headquarters of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation.
3. In Saudi Arabia government and royalty are one and the same, and they value links with UK royalty. For ten years Prince Andrew acted as a Special Representative for Trade, making several trips to Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states. This visit by his elder brother, made at the request of the UK government, must be seen as a positive endorsement of government policy.
4. On 14 March 2011 Saudi Arabia sent scores of UK-made armoured personnel carriers into Bahrain to aid the government's bloody suppression of pro-democracy protesters. The armoured vehicles, marketed as Tacticas, were manufactured by BAE Systems Land Systems Division in Newcastle Upon Tyne with final assembly taking place in Belgium.
5. CAAT's arms export app reveals details of licences for military and dual-use equipment licensed to Saudi Arabia between January 2008 and September 2012. In addition to £3.4 billion worth of military aircraft, the UK has exported significant amounts of other military equipment, including "grenades, bombs, missiles and countermeasures", small arms and ammunition, armoured vehicles and tanks, telecommunications and "information security", sensors and lasers, and other electronic equipment.
6. There are extensive military links between the UK and Saudi Arabia, especially through the Ministry of Defence Saudi Armed Forces Project (MODSAP) and the Saudi Arabian National Guard Communications Project (SANGCOM). About 270 UK Ministry of Defence civil servants and military personnel work in the UK and Saudi Arabia to support the contracts through the MODSAP and SANGCOM. They are paid for by the Saudi Arabian Government.
7. In April 2012, BAE Systems signed a contract to build 48 Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft in the UK for the Saudi Arabian Air Force but changes to the price of the deal have yet to be agreed.
8. Both BAE Systems and GPT, a UK subsidiary of EADS, have been the subject of Serious Fraud Office (SFO) investigations with regards to corruption. In August 2012 the SFO announced it was investigating allegations of corruption regarding Saudi Arabia and GPT with regard to the SANGCOM project where two former employees said that payments totalling £14.5 million have been made by GPT to two Cayman Islands-registered companies and that these payments were irregular as no actual work was done. Meanwhile, a Sunday Times investigation revealed that BAE's former chairman acquired two luxury properties from offshore companies linked to a Saudi military deal.
9. The Foreign Affairs Committee is currently considering written and oral evidence from organisations and individuals on UK trade and defence relations with Saudi Arabia and Bahrain. In October 2012, Saudi officials said that the country was "insulted" by the inquiry and were now "re-evaluating their country's historic relations with Britain".

Uni students protest against arms trade in national day of action

Students at five UK universities held co-ordinated protests on a day of action against the arms trade. The day of action on 6 March aimed to challenge the arms companies that are present in universities and local communities. Protests took varying forms, from occupying company offices to taking action against arms company recruitment, but all carried the same message: “The arms trade is not welcome in our community”.

Protests took place at:

• Students mobilised in Swansea when they heard that the university had organised a careers event with Marshall Aerospace. They planned a leafleting action to raise awareness of what the company does. The careers event was then cancelled.
• Weapons out of Warwick occupied the reception of General Dynamics, and blocked the doors with hazard tape warning “arms trade at work”. They highlighted General Dynamics' indiscriminate sales of arms worldwide, including to General Gaddafi's regime in Libya.
• Lancaster students staged a “die-in” on the Preston campus to protest against university shareholdings in BAE Systems, one of the world's largest arms companies. BAE has close links with the university – the Lancaster University Management School (LUMS) runs a BAE specific course, the BAE Systems Certificate in Management.
• In London activists leafleted passers-by outside the offices of Lockheed Martin, possibly the world's largest arms company, to raise awareness of the presence of arms companies in central London.
• Sheffield students staging a “die-in” in front of a Thales recruitment exhibition at a careers fair were manhandled off the premises by security guards. Thales is France's largest arms company and is involved in manufacturing drones and missiles.

The day of action was organised by Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT) Universities Network. It took place six months before Defence Systems & Equipment International (DSEi), one of the world's largest arms fairs, is scheduled to open. Activists have vowed to peacefully protest again in September when 1,300 arms companies head to London for DSEi

Beth Smith, CAAT's outgoing Universities Co-ordinator, said:

Across the UK, students have shown that arms companies will not go unchallenged but will be met with resistance. This is particularly important in the run-up to the DSEi arms fair where arms companies will be flogging their wares to military delegations from repressive regimes and conflict zones.

ENDS

NOTES

1. CAAT Universities Network exists to help students and staff in higher education to campaign to break the links between universities and the arms trade.
2. Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT) works to end the international arms trade. The arms business has a devastating impact on human rights and society and damages economic development. Large-scale military procurement and arms exports only reinforce a militaristic approach to international problems. In 2012, CAAT was awarded a Right Livelihood Award, the "Alternative Nobel Prize" for its "innovative and effective campaigning against the arms trade".
3. CAAT's arms trade map of the UK enables people to learn more about the activities of the often secretive arms industry and to take action against the arms companies on their doorstep.
4. The DSEi arms fair, one of the world's largest, takes place every two years. In 2011 it hosted delegations from Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and seven other authoritarian regimes. Delegations were also invited from countries involved in armed conflict, including Colombia, India, Iraq, Pakistan, Peru and Turkey.

EU arms embargo on Syria should not be amended, say peace groups

Groups organised in the European Network Against Arms Trade (ENAAT) strongly oppose any moves to amend the current EU arms embargo on Syria as supported by the United Kingdom (UK). A proposal to do so, to enable military equipment to be sent to anti-Assad groups, will be presented to the Council of Foreign Ministers by the UK on Thursday 31 January.

Syria is already awash with weaponry. Any further weaponry would most likely prolong the conflict and reduce the chances of a peaceful outcome. The anti-Assad groups are largely an unknown quantity, consisting of many different groups, including those of a highly sectarian nature. Supplying arms to any group will increase future instability.

Moreover, sending more arms to the region will have long-term consequences, as arms do not go away after the conflict but might turn up with other groups in Syria or in surrounding countries, as demonstrated by the Libyan arms now being used in Mali.

Instead of easing the arms embargo the EU should place pressure on Russia and other supplier countries to stop supplying weapons to the Syrian government, and ensure no weaponry supplied to third countries, such as Saudi Arabia, is sent on to any faction within Syria.

Signed by:

• Aktion Aufschrei - Stoppt den Waffenhandel!, Germany - Christine Hoffmann
• Bremen Foundation for arms conversion and peace research, Germany - Andrea Kolling
• Campagne tegen Wapenhandel, The Netherlands - Wendela de Vries
• Campaign Against Arms Trade, UK - Kaye Stearman
• Centre d'Estudis per a la Pau JM Delàs (Justícia i Pau) Spain - Jordi Calvo Rufanges
• Gruppe Schweiz ohne Armee (GSoA) / Groupe pour une Suisse sans armée (GSsA) - Adi Feller
• Norwegian Peace Association- Hannah Eline Ander
• Rete Italiana per il Disarmo, Italy - Giorgio Beretta
• Swedish Peace and Arbitration Society – Anna Ek, president
• Vredesactie , Belgium - Roel Stynen

ENDS

NOTES

1. European Network Against Arms Trade (ENAAT) is a grouping of European anti-arms trade organisations, including Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT) in the UK.
2. Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT) works to end the international arms trade. The arms business has a devastating impact on human rights and society and damages economic development. Large-scale military procurement and arms exports only reinforce a militaristic approach to international problems. In 2012, CAAT was awarded a Right Livelihood Award, the "alternative Nobel Prize" for its "innovative and effective campaigning against the arms trade".
3. Read CAAT's full statement on arms sales to Syria.

Large increase in EU arms exports revealed

The "Fourteenth Annual Report on Control of Exports of Military Technology and Equipment" reveals that in 2011 European Union (EU) countries licensed arms exports valued at €37.5 billion - an increase of almost one fifth on 2010. The largest and fastest growing markets for weapons were in the Middle East and Asia, including countries embroiled in the uprisings of 2011, while Saudi Arabia replaced the USA as the largest customer.

The report was published on 14 December 2012, without a press release from the EU Council or an announcement on the European Parliament website. Groups from the European Network Against Arms Trade (ENAAT) are discussing the report and its shortcomings.

"The report is a huge document, packed with figures, but without analysis of the contents or comparison tables with data from past years. Also, as in previous years, the report is incomplete and lacks information on arms deliveries - information which is unavailable in several EU countries, including Germany and the UK," says arms analyst Giorgio Beretta of Rete Italiana per il Disarmo (Italian Disarmament Network).

He is critical of the lack of transparency in the EU report and of the time taken to deliver statistics, which were already obsolete. "It seems to take a whole year for EU officials to receive and assemble the data from national reports: reports on exports of turnips and potatoes come faster than those of arms."

Wendela de Vries of the Dutch Campagne tegen Wapenhandel (Campaign Against Arms Trade) expresses the hope that the report - unlike previous years - will be discussed in the European Parliament as an issue with high relevance for human rights, peace and security. She said: "Given that the EU has now joined the ranks of the Nobel Peace laureates, we call for action to close the gap between the EU's peace rhetoric and its profiteering from war preparations."

The report reveals that the major EU arms exporting countries are:

1. France (€9.9 billion)

2. United Kingdom (€7 billion)

3. Germany (€5.4 billion)

4. Italy (€5.2 billion)

5. Spain (€2.8 billion).

These five countries were the source of over 80% of EU military exports.

Other countries also had significant military exports, including Austria (€1.6 billion), Sweden (€1.2 billion,), Poland (€849 million), the Netherlands (€415 million), Estonia (€350 million) and the Czech Republic (€346 million).

Other relevant figures:

• In 2011 EU arms export licences were valued at €37.5 billion - an increase of 18.3% at current value on 2010.
• There was a decrease in arms export licences to North America (falling from €4.6 billion in 2008 to €3.6 billion in 2011) and to Central and South America.
• There was an increase in the value of arms export licences to Asia (from €4.7 billion in 2010 to over €5.5 billion in 2011), to the Middle East (from €6.6 billion to almost €8 billion) and, on a smaller scale, to sub-Saharan Africa where exports reached €493 million.
• Saudi Arabia was the largest single customer for EU arms sales, buying weapons worth over €4.2 billion, the largest supplier being the UK, with a contract for Eurofighter Typhoons worth over €2 billion.
• The United Arab Emirates (UAE) was also a major customer buying over €1.9 billion worth of arms.
• There was a slight fall in exports to North Africa compared to 2010. Despite the ongoing Arab Spring, and the revocation of some arms licences by some countries and an arms embargo on Libya from March 2011, arms licences were issued to Tunisia (€16.5 million), Egypt (€303 million) and Libya (€34 million).
• The EU also authorised arms exports to Algeria (€815 million, mainly from Italy) and Morocco (€335 million, mainly from France).
• Weapons continued to be exported to areas of tension such as India (€1.5 billion) and Pakistan (€410 million) and even Afghanistan - a country still under partial arms embargo - which in 2011 saw a record €465 million of military imports from EU countries.
• There were 48,123 arms export licences applied for in 2011 and just 379 refusals worldwide. The report lists refusals as: 94 to non-EU European countries, 74 to the Middle East, 67 to North Africa, 52 to sub-Saharan Africa, 40 to North-east Asia, 38 to South Asia, 31 to South-east Asia, 16 to Central Asia, 15 to South America and 11 to Central America and the Caribbean.

Signed by:

• Aktion Aufschrei - Stoppt den Waffenhandel!, Germany - Paul Russmann, Jürgen Grässlin
• Bremen Foundation for arms conversion and peace research, Germany - Andrea Kolling
• Campaign Against Arms Trade, UK - Kaye Stearman
• Campagne tegen Wapenhandel, The Netherlands - Wendela de Vries
• Centre d'Estudis per a la Pau JM Delàs (Justícia i Pau) Spain - Jordi Calvo
• International Peace Bureau, Geneva - Colin Archer
• Norwegian Peace Association- Hannah Eline Ander
• NESEHNUTÍ ,Czech Republic - Peter Tkác
• Rete Italiana per il Disarmo, Italy - Giorgio Beretta
• Vredesactie , Belgium - Hans Lammerant

ENDS

NOTES

1. The "Fourteenth Annual Report on Control of Exports of Military Technology and Equipment" is available in pdf and html format. Previous reports are posted on the SIPRI website.
2. European Network Against Arms Trade (ENAAT) is a grouping of European anti-arms trade organisations, including Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT) in the UK.
3. Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT) in the UK works to end the international arms trade. The arms business has a devastating impact on human rights and society and damages economic development. Large-scale military procurement and arms exports only reinforce a militaristic approach to international problems. Around 75% of CAAT's income is raised from individual supporters. In 2012, CAAT was awarded a Right Livelihood Award, the "alternative Nobel Prize" for its "innovative and effective campaigning against the arms trade".
4. The award of the 2012 Nobel Peace Prize to the European Union (EU) was controversial. A statement signed by Nobel laureates Mairead Maguire, Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Adolfo Perez Esquivel, and other peace campaigners, contended that the EU was not a "champion of peace", as specified in the will of Alfred Nobel, and the award to the EU was therefore unlawful.