After being turned down by the US, Jordan is buying armed drones from.......
....China. ???
QuoteChina is offering to sell Jordan missile-firing drones to fight the Islamic State terror army, according to a U.S. congressman.
"I am now aware that China is presently in Jordan to discuss operations, logistics and maintenance associated with the urgent sale of weaponized unmanned systems," Rep. Duncan Hunter, California Republican, said in a letter on Thursday to President Obama.
Rep. Hunter has pressed the Obama administration — to no avail — to approve the sale of Predator unmanned surveillance aircraft to the kingdom.
source: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2015/may/14/china-sell-jordan-missile-firing-drones-after-obam/
The whole region is full of crooked untrustworthy Islamic regimes, but Jordan seems to be one of the few that tries to keep it's foot on Islamonutjub necks.
Their leadership seems quite rational compared to most others. I wonder if it's due to having closer & longer-held ties with the British. More western culture seeped in? Didn't someone post about the King being on a couple Star Trek episodes when he was a Prince, even?
If we were gonna help any of the ISIS neighbors in fighting them, I would think Jordan would have to qualify high on that short list of possibilities. Especially now that our "ally", Turkey, has been a generally useless & enabling D-bag in recent years.
Quote from: Nefaro on May 14, 2015, 04:57:25 PM
The whole region is full of crooked untrustworthy Islamic regimes, but Jordan seems to be one of the few that tries to keep it's foot on Islamonutjub necks.
Their leadership seems quite rational compared to most others. I wonder if it's due to having closer & longer-held ties with the British. More western culture seeped in? Didn't someone post about the King being on a couple Star Trek episodes when he was a Prince, even?
If we were gonna help any of the ISIS neighbors in fighting them, I would think Jordan would have to qualify high on that short list of possibilities. Especially now that our "ally", Turkey, has been a generally useless & enabling D-bag in recent years.
Amen!
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fupload.wikimedia.org%2Fwikipedia%2Fcommons%2Fthumb%2Fc%2Fc4%2FCoat_of_arms_of_Jordan.svg%2F396px-Coat_of_arms_of_Jordan.svg.png&hash=ff85cd6f73930e6760e9d7077551d6961abef9f9)
Quote from: Nefaro on May 14, 2015, 04:57:25 PM
The whole region is full of crooked untrustworthy Islamic regimes, but Jordan seems to be one of the few that tries to keep it's foot on Islamonutjub necks.
Their leadership seems quite rational compared to most others. I wonder if it's due to having closer & longer-held ties with the British. More western culture seeped in? Didn't someone post about the King being on a couple Star Trek episodes when he was a Prince, even?
If we were gonna help any of the ISIS neighbors in fighting them, I would think Jordan would have to qualify high on that short list of possibilities. Especially now that our "ally", Turkey, has been a generally useless & enabling D-bag in recent years.
Pretty much my thoughts as well. I'd have thought if there was anyone over there (aside from Israel) we could safely sell military hardware to, Jordan would probably at the top of the list.
Considering the trouble the F-35 has had this might be more of a blessing:
QuotePresident Obama's Camp David summit with the Gulf Arab states on Thursday will seek to boost arms sales to the Gulf neighbors but the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter has been taken off their wish list.
White House officials on Monday sought to tamp down speculation that King Salman of Saudi Arabia canceled his attendance at Camp David when the U.S. made clear that his country would not be permitted to buy F-35s.
source: http://www.military.com/daily-news/2015/05/12/white-house-says-f35s-not-for-sale-to-gulf-arab-states.html
Considering what those Gulf states would face, the F-35 would be a poor choice anyway. Think of the number of proven gen-4 airframes they could get for the cost of one F-35, along with the much cheaper maintenance logistics.
Quote from: Martok on May 15, 2015, 10:24:00 AM
Quote from: Nefaro on May 14, 2015, 04:57:25 PM
The whole region is full of crooked untrustworthy Islamic regimes, but Jordan seems to be one of the few that tries to keep it's foot on Islamonutjub necks.
Their leadership seems quite rational compared to most others. I wonder if it's due to having closer & longer-held ties with the British. More western culture seeped in? Didn't someone post about the King being on a couple Star Trek episodes when he was a Prince, even?
If we were gonna help any of the ISIS neighbors in fighting them, I would think Jordan would have to qualify high on that short list of possibilities. Especially now that our "ally", Turkey, has been a generally useless & enabling D-bag in recent years.
Pretty much my thoughts as well. I'd have thought if there was anyone over there (aside from Israel) we could safely sell military hardware to, Jordan would probably at the top of the list.
And yet the US has turned them down, and they bought from the US' greatest competitor hurting US interests. That really doesn't seem such a bright move does it? The bottom line is they now have drones, and China wins economically.