BESMAYA COMBAT TRAINING CENTER, Iraq — The Iraqi general grabbed the hull of America’s No. 1 battle tank and gave it a shake.
“It’s very hot,” said Gen. Mohan al-Furayji, the Iraqi defense minister’s top military adviser. “I’m afraid my soldiers won’t be able to operate behind these tanks.”
His concerns threatened to derail an arms deal worth as much $2.16 billion. That alarmed Brig. Gen. Charles Luckey, who, on this sweltering day in the desert, was a salesman of sorts.
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You could even say he is the U.S. military’s senior used-tank salesman. Luckey is the U.S. officer in charge of foreign military sales to Iraq. It’s his job to move the merchandise.
“For as little as $300 you can get a blast deflector to deal with the heat,” Luckey said.
“I might even throw them in for free for you,” he added, sweetening the deal.
Iraq is fast becoming one of the United States’ top customers for military sales. Since January 2007, Iraq has spent $3.1 billion on U.S. weapons. That number looks likely to grow exponentially as Iraq uses its vast unspent reserves of petrodollars to develop its army into a force capable of defending its borders against hostile neighbors.
