Iraq is looking to buy anti-aircraft weaponry
Thales Ground Master 400 Alpha long-range air surveillance radar. Photo: Thales
Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – The spokesperson for the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Major General Yahya Rasoul, said on Monday that Iraq is sending military and technical delegations to several countries to explore its possibilities for acquiring anti-aircraft weaponry.
Rasoul clarified that Iraq has purchased French radars, some of which have already arrived, and is currently working to have complete radar systems, according to the Iraqi News Agency (INA).
During a visit of the Iraqi Minister of Defense, Thabet Al-Abbasi, to France earlier in March, the French Minister of the Armed Forces, Sebastien Lecornu, expressed France’s eagerness to cooperate in supporting Iraq after the completion of the international coalition’s mission and to focus on bilateral relations in accordance with a memorandum of cooperation between Iraq and France.
The two sides agreed on supporting Iraq’s sovereignty by securing its airspace using the latest technologies and equipment.
Last July, Lecornu and Al-Abbasi reviewed the discussions Baghdad was holding with Thales Group regarding the GM400 radar.
In January 2023, during a visit to Paris, the Iraqi Prime Minister, Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani, met with representatives of Thales Group, Dassault Group, and Airbus to discuss the possible supply of radars, Rafale aircraft, and military helicopters to Baghdad.
The Iraqi and French air forces conducted joint exercises in Iraq last May, in which Rafale aircraft took part.