Is Ukraine Selling Uganda Crippled Tanks?

The government paper of the African country reported that after the delivery of about sixty T-55s from Ukraine, the opposition issued a statement to the effect that only eight are operable. In its turn, Ugandan government officials point out that that is a lie, and all the purchased tanks are in good repair. However, none of the parties questions the Ukrainian origin of the tanks.

The T-55s are the oldest tanks the Ukrainian army have in service. As of the beginning of this year, the Defense Ministry arsenals stored 154 such tanks. Uganda is not the subject of any sanctions, and selling weapons to it is not forbidden.

Thus, Kyiv faces no obstacles in shipping military secondhand to the dark continent. However, of late the Head of the State Export Control Service, an organization responsible for licensing arms sales, has already said that Ukraine does not sell arms in Africa. All efforts to get Ukrspetseksport, a leading state-owned arms trading company, to comment on either the Uganda issue or geographical priorities for Ukrainian arms sellers have been unsuccessful, except that one of the employees said, once again, by telephone that "in a military sense Ukraine does not have anything to do with Uganda". Ukrainian official silence can be explained by the fact that currently the subject of expected personnel and structural changes in the Ukrainian arms trading system is being actively discussed in the corridors of power. Thus, in this uncertain time officials would rather keep their mouth shut. Experts do not rule out that the predicted changes can affect the Export Control Service chain of command. However, primarily they mention First Deputy Premier on Industrial Policy Anatoly Holubchenko, who also is chairman of a exports control inter-sector commission, although they maintain that it is absolutely irrelevant to the Ukrainian tanks in Uganda.

INCIDENTALLY

Last week, Verkhovna Rada set up a provisional investigating commission to examine illegal sales of arms and military property, and their illegal transfer to other countries in the period from 1991 to 1998. Arguing in favor of such a commission, People's Deputy and Hromada member Yevhen Smyrnov said that illegal sales of arms and military property continue, bringing the probable violators up to $1 billion monthly in profit, reported Interfax-Ukraine. Simple addition comes up with $12 billion a year! Against which IMF and World Bank loans, whose vital importance is continuously repeated by the government, look like mere alms to the poor. In fact, if the figures presented by Mr. Smyrnov are correct, the President, government and Parliament do not need to bother their heads with economic problems nor rack their brains over drawing up the budget. Putting the arms trade in order would be quite enough. However, I personally have very serious doubts that anyone besides Mr. Smyrnov will the risk to deprive the illegal traders (if they exist) of the chance to rake in a billion bucks a month.

Dmytro SKRYABIN, The Day