Want to know the REAL REASONS why France blocked the NATO protection of Turkey and why Belgium and Germany followed suit?

In early January 2001 the French parliament had passed a resolution which declared the killing of Armenians, by Ottoman Turks, 86 years ago was a "genocide." Turkey retaliated at the farcical nations politics by hitting France where it counts - its pocketbook:

**Turkey has banned two French companies, Alcatel Space Industries and Matra Marconi Space, from bidding for defense contracts for a year, according to the government's Official Gazette. Turkey has already canceled contracts to buy a spy satellite from Alcatel, and for a navigation upgrade to its F-16 fighters by Dassault Aviation; it also and has barred Thales from bidding for a major radar buy. (BBC News, Feb. 8)

(Incidentally that Alcatel deal alone was worth $249 million)

Here's more inside scoop...

There was also a Turkish 7 BILLION dollar deal for 1000 main battle tanks - French company GIAT was competing for the contract.

Turkish-Franco relations went south real quickly and France's NATO veto is the pettiest form of tit-for-tat grudge politics one would expect from the French.

So French industrialists miss out on many lucrative deals - where do they go to make up the difference?

Hint: Every Old Euros favorite despot - he has over 43 different torture chambers and 100 palaces!

Yes, Saddam Hussein:

Flash forward seven months...

5, September 2001
(6 days prior to 9/11)

A French contract for Iraq's purchase of some $75 million worth of telecommunications equipment from Alcatel, however, has gained U.S. approval, according to U.S. and UN diplomats. The U.S. administration has continued to block a $330,000 Alcatel contract for fiber-optic equipment, according to the "Washington Post" of 5 September.

Turkey spurns them...so they race to Iraq and Saddam Hussein for their blood money and the first chance they get to stab Turkey in the back - they do.

And Germany is right alongside the French up to their eyeballs in duplicity:

GERMANY PUTS CHARGE D'AFFAIRES IN BAGHDAD. German diplomat Claude Robert Ellner has been his country's charge d'affaires in Baghdad since the beginning of September, the Duesseldorf business paper "Handelsblatt" reported on 4 September. A decision reportedly has already been made on purchasing buildings for a new office and a residence, though a Foreign Ministry spokesperson did not want to confirm that information. Instead, Berlin stresses --"obviously in consideration for the U.S. alliance partner" -- that no additional change is planned in Germany's policy toward Iraq.

The main manager of the Federation for German Industry (BDI), Ludolf von Wartenburg, and other members of the BDI have consistently demanded an opening up of Germany's policy toward Iraq and the presence of an ambassador there. Germany feels that it is at a competitive disadvantage against competitors from other countries. "Therefore, German industry expects an emancipation, in particular from the United States, regarding Iraq but also Iran and Libya," he demanded. (David Nissman
Excerpted from this source

Yes it's a race in europe to get Saddam's blood money!

"Hug the richest psychopath" has been all the rage in the EU industrial community policy for many years now.

It is painfully clear to the informed which nations are REALLY being driven by $$$$ for blood.

SDAI-Tech1

PS
(Hey, we can't let Tom do all the research legwork can we? After all he's not getting paid for it ;-)