Privately owned fighter jets

WASHINGTON: In a telephone call with the emir of Kuwait in January, U.S. President Donald Trump pressed the Gulf monarch to move forward on a US$10 billion fighter jet deal that had been stalled for more than a year.Trump was acting on behalf of Boeing Co , America’s second-largest defence contractor, which had become frustrated that a long-delayed sale critical to its military aircraft division was going nowhere, several people familiar with the matter said.With this Oval Office intervention, the details of which have not been previously reported, Trump did something unusual for a U.S. president – he personally helped to close a major arms deal. In private phone calls and public appearances with world leaders, Trump has gone further than any of his predecessors to act as a salesman for the U.S. defence industry, analysts said.Trump's personal role underscores his determination to make the United States, already dominant in the global weapons trade, an even bigger … [Read more...] about Arming the world: Inside Trump’s ‘Buy American’ drive to expand weapons exports

PRETORIA - Former South African president Jacob Zuma will face prosecution on corruption charges that haunted much of his term in office, the country's chief prosecutor said Friday. Accusations of graft dogged Zuma throughout his term in office -- the charges have now been reinstated The ruling is the latest twist in a case that has dogged post-apartheid South Africa's democratic leadership after the country inked a $5-billion (4.2-billion-euro) arms deal in the 1990s."After consideration of the matter I am of the view there are reasonable prospects of a successful prosecution of Mr Zuma on the charges listed in the indictment," said National Director of Public Prosecutions Shaun Abrahams at a media briefing in Pretoria.Zuma will face racketeering, corruption, money laundering and fraud charges -- all of which can carry lengthy custodial sentences on conviction. "I am of the view that a trial court would be the most appropriate forum for these issues to be ventilated and to be decided … [Read more...] about S.Africa ex-president Zuma to face graft prosecution

The crash of an Aseman Airlines ATR-72 like this one in Iran killed 65 people. (Creative Commons via Wikipedia) TEHRAN: An Iranian commercial airplane brought back into service only months ago after being grounded for seven years crashed Sunday in a foggy, mountainous region of southern Iran, and officials said they feared all 65 people on board were killed. The crash of the Aseman Airlines ATR-72 marks yet another fatal aviation disaster for Iran, which for years was barred from buying airplane parts for needed maintenance due to Western sanctions over its contested nuclear program. Its nuclear accord with world powers allows it to get those parts and the country has made deals worth tens of billions of dollars for new aircraft. However, President Donald Trump's refusal to recertify the deal has injected uncertainty into those sales while Iranians still fly in ageing aircraft. The ATR-72, a twin-engine turboprop used for short-distance regional flying, went down near its destination … [Read more...] about Restored Iran plane crashes, kills 65