"German arms manufacturer Kraus-Maffei Wegmann (KMW) has just closed a billion dollar deal with Qatar that was five years in the making. On Thursday (18.04.2013), the Munich-based company announced that it signed a contract to deliver 62 Leopard 2 tanks and 24 self-propelled howitzers to the emirate. The price for the arms: roughly 1.9 billion euros ($2.48 billion)." "Qatar expert and political scientist Hamadi El-Aouni from the University of Berlin said he thinks the Gulf state wants the tanks to support friendly groups in other countries. "It's not impossible that that these weapons will be shipped off somewhere," he told DW. "I assume toward Syria, via Turkey. Or possibly Lebanon." " (thanks Amir)
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