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Saturday, March 31, 2012

Iraq seeks killer missiles, but U.S. wary

[AIM-120 AMRAAM]Iraq is acquiring an array of missiles and other sophisticated systems for the 36 Lockheed Martin F-16s it's buying to build an air force but Washington is reluctant to provide Baghdad with the most advanced U.S. weapons.

U.S. officials say they are worried that a strong Iraqi air force with offensive weapons systems would alarm Iraq's neighbors. Saddam Hussein invaded Iran in 1980 and Kuwait a decade later.

Even nine years after Saddam was toppled in the 2003 U.S. invasion, Saudi Arabia and its Sunni Muslim allies in the Persian Gulf remain deeply suspicious of Shiite-majority Iraq and its Shiite leader, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.

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