US Approves $2 Billion Missile Sale to United Arab Emirates

By: Jason Ditz, Antiwar.com |

Sale Will Include 165 Patriot Missiles.

The Pentagon has issued a statement confirming that the US State Department has signed off on a $2 billion sale of US-made Patriot missiles to the United Arab Emirates, adding to the tiny Gulf nation’s ever growing military arsenal.

The sale includes 65 PAC-3 interceptors and 100 GEM-T missiles. It is unclear when the UAE intends to do with all these missiles, though the State Department was willing to sign off on it being in the “national security” interest of the US to make the sales.

That process virtually goes without saying at this point, as for years the US has been signing off on growing sales of arms across the Middle East, and anything but an immediate approval is extremely rare, and usually extremely temporary.

The UAE has shown interest in increased military operations abroad in recent years, both regionally and into Africa. It’s unclear what, if any, military value such massively expensive missiles would have in such operations, however.

UAE Plans to Have Mars Colony Within 100 Years

(MEE) The United Arab Emirates has laid out plans to build a human colony on Mars in 2117, according to an Al Jazeera report on Tuesday.

Called the “Mars 2117 Project”, Dubai’s ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum unveiled the daunting project at the 5th World Government Summit.

“The landing of people on other planets has been a longtime dream for humans. Our aim is that the UAE will spearhead international efforts to make this dream a reality,” said Sheikh Mohammad.

Join the Revolution: Click Here for the Homepage of Independent Media

He added that the UAE is a world leader in space science.

“The new project is a seed that we plant today, and we expect future generations to reap the benefits, driven by its passion to learn to unveil a new knowledge,” he said.

A government statement said the UAE, in conjunction with an international coalition of scientific institutions, will spearhead the initiative.

“Human ambitions have no limits, and whoever looks into the scientific breakthroughs in the current century believes that human abilities can realize the most important human dream,” read the statement.

Mars 2117 plans to emphasize methods of quick transportation between the two planets, as well as develop ways of growing vegetation.

The UAE created a space agency in July 2014 through a presidential decree. One of its primary missions is to launch a satellite to Mars by 2021.

By MEE Staff / Republished with permission / Middle East Eye / Report a typo