South Africa probes arms sales to Azerbaijan

The National Conventional Arms Control Committee (NCACC), the statutory body overseeing South Africa’s armament deals, rushed to table all outstanding reports to Parliament following DA MP David Maynier’s letter last week to committee chairman, Minister in the Presidency Jeff Radebe, Pretoria reported.

South Africa exported just over R3.38 billion of military-related equipment between April 2012 to end of June last year, according to the NCACC reports, which also show imports to the value of R197 million over the same period.

Exports included 40 sniper rifles valued at R3.8m and just under R12m worth of ammunition to Azerbaijan, which remains under an arms embargo by the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe following its 1992 conflict with Armenia.

The NCACC reports show South Africa in the same period also exported 100 sub-machine guns to Armenia.

Maynier on Monday said he would again write to Radebe requesting a probe into these sales: “We have to be absolutely sure that South Africa is not contributing to regional instability by selling conventional arms that are being used in the Nagorno-Karabakh region or on the border between Azerbaijan and Armenia”.

The NCACC reports also show military-related exports to China centred around electronic monitoring equipment and simulation software.

Bakudaily.Az