Britain to Deliver Eurofighter Jets to Qatar amid Regional Tensions

British Defense Secretary Michael Fallon signed a letter of intent with Qatar on Sunday that will see BAE Systems provide 24 Typhoon jets and support capabilities worth billions of dollars.
 
The move has shocked observers as it comes only three months after UK Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson claimed Qatar was funding militant groups.
 
On June 5, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Bahrain severed relations with Qatar and imposed a blockade against it, accusing Doha of funding "terrorism". Qatar has vehemently rejected the allegations as "baseless".
 
On June 22, the group issued a 13-point list of demands, including the shutdown of Al Jazeera, limiting ties with Iran, and expelling Turkish troops stationed in the country as a prerequisite to lifting the blockade. Doha rejected all the demands, denouncing them as attempts to infringe Qatar's sovereignty.
 
Speaking in Qatar on Sunday, where he met with Qatari defense minister Khalid Bin Mohammed Al Attiyad, Fallon said he hoped the deal would "enhance security within the region."
 
"This will be the first major defense contract with Qatar, one of the UK's strategic partners," said Fallon. "This is an important moment in our defense relationship and the basis for even closer defense co-operation between our two countries. We also hope that this will help enhance security within the region across all Persian Gulf allies."
 
The latest move comes as the UK's $16bn defense industry is facing intense scrutiny over exports to Saudi Arabia and other states accused of major human rights violations.
 
e agreed a major new deal to supply Qatar with Eurofighter Typhoon jets, despite growing tensions among Persian Gulf sheikhdoms.
 
British Defense Secretary Michael Fallon signed a letter of intent with Qatar on Sunday that will see BAE Systems provide 24 Typhoon jets and support capabilities worth billions of dollars.
 
The move has shocked observers as it comes only three months after UK Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson claimed Qatar was funding of militant groups.
 
On June 5, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Bahrain severed relations with Qatar and imposed a blockade against it, accusing Doha of funding "terrorism". Qatar has vehemently rejected the allegations as "baseless".
 
On June 22, the group issued a 13-point list of demands, including the shutdown of Al Jazeera, limiting ties with Iran, and expelling Turkish troops stationed in the country as a prerequisite to lifting the blockade. Doha rejected all the demands, denouncing them as attempts to infringe Qatar's sovereignty.
 
Speaking in Qatar on Sunday, where he met with Qatari defense minister Khalid Bin Mohammed Al Attiyad, Fallon said he hoped the deal would "enhance security within the region".
 
"This will be the first major defense contract with Qatar, one of the UK's strategic partners," said Fallon. "This is an important moment in our defense relationship and the basis for even closer defense co-operation between our two countries. We also hope that this will help enhance security within the region across all Persian Gulf allies."
 
The latest move comes as the UK's $16bn defense industry is facing intense scrutiny over exports to Saudi Arabia and other states accused of major human rights violations.

Britain is also being accused of fanning the Persian Gulf conflict by arming major adversaries in the crisis, namely Saudi Arabia and Qatar, after it emerged that the two sheikhdoms are in a list of countries identified by officials as “priority markets” for the UK's defense industry.