Arms Merchants Still Look to Mideast
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Arms merchants, unimpressed by the peace talks between Israel and its Arab foes, turned out in force in Dubai on Sunday convinced that the Middle East remains one of the last promising arms markets in the world.
The Dubai ’91 Airshow, which opened Sunday, has drawn more than 400 defense firms, all eager to sell weapons to nations for whom the Gulf War was a graphic illustration of the need for self-defense.
“In our view, all of the (Persian) Gulf countries have come to the realization that they have to increase their defense capabilities as a result of the war,” said Aldo Massara, president of the Raytheon Middle East Co.
Raytheon, maker of the Patriot antimissile missiles that downed Iraqi Scud missiles over Saudi Arabia and Israel during the war, set up a new company in Dubai last month to boost sales to the region.
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