France, Kuwait strike $2.8bn military deals
Kuwait has signed a number of major military deals with France, amid concerns in the Arab kingdom about potential terrorist attacks by the Daesh Takfiri militants.
According to the French government, the deals, which include fixed and provisional agreements worth USD 2.8 billion (about 2.5 billion euros), were signed on Wednesday in the capital, Paris, by a slew of ministers.
The deals are led by the purchase of 24 Airbus-built Caracal helicopters for which Kuwait City is set to pay one billion euros with an option for a further six.
The Caracal is equipped with radar missile protection as well as air-to-ground and air-to-sea missiles among its weaponry. The chopper is deployed on combat rescue missions and long-distance troop transport.
The oil-rich state agreed to buy 28 Typhoon combat warplanes from the Eurofighter consortium last month.
Under further deals, Paris is to provide Kuwait City with French light-armored vehicles and maintenance for patrol boats.
Sources have said that the patrol boats would include the renovation of eight P37 craft that France sold to Kuwait after the 1990 attack by Iraq.
The deals come as the Arab country is seeking to improve its firepower amid rising security concerns in the Middle East due to the presence of Takfiri militant groups like Daesh.
Earlier this year, a bomb explosion at a Shia mosque in the east of Kuwait City left over two dozen people dead and more than 200 others injured. Daesh terrorists claimed responsibility for the attack.
The incident prompted the Kuwaiti government to declare itself at war with the terrorists, saying Daesh aims to sow discord and stoke sectarian strife in Kuwait.
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