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Exclusive: US objections could kill $209 million Honduras deal
A massive security agreement Israel recently signed with Honduras could run into major hurdles in Washington, The Jerusalem Post has learned....The Honduran Air Force is a key component in the government’s battle against drug traffickers in the country. Gangs, organized crime and drugs have long plagued the Central American nation, and for many years it held the dubious title of "murder capital of the world." Hernandez has said the deal with Israel will give the Honduran government capabilities it has never had before to "protect its territory, sovereignty and people." According to IHS Jane’s Defense Weekly, the contracts with Israel ‐ valued at $209 million ‐ include the refurbishment of the Honduran Air Force’s entire helicopter fleet, as well as many of its fixedwing aircraft. These include US-made F-5 and A-37 jets and Bell UH-1 Hughes 500 "Huey" helicopters. And that is what may become an issue for Washington, and what ‐ according to one diplomatic source ‐ "throws a wrench into what otherwise sounds like a simple deal." The US stopped most of its assistance to the Honduran Air Force in 2014, after one of Hernandez’s first acts as president was to get the "Law of Aerial Exclusion" passed. This law authorizes the air force to shoot down suspected drug planes flying through Honduran airspace, something the US considers a violation of the Chicago Convention on International Civil Aviation. Air America to the white courtesy phone? Posted by: g(r)omgoru 2016-12-15 |
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