Η ΚΥΒΕΡΝΗΣΗ ΟΜΠΑΜΑ ΣΚΟΠΕΥΕΙ ΝΑ ΠΟΥΛΗΣΕΙ ΕΞΟΠΛΙΣΜΕΝΑ ΜΗ-ΕΠΑΝΔΡΩΜΕΝΑ ΑΕΡΟΣΚΑΦΗ ΣΕ ΙΤΑΛΙΑ-ΤΟΥΡΚΙΑ.

Obama administration looks to sell armed UAVs to Italy, Turkey

The Pentagon wants more North Atlantic Treaty Organization members to have such pilotless aircraft to ease the burden on the U.S. in Afghanistan and in future conflicts like the alliance’s air campaign in Libya this year.
Administration officials recently began informal consultations with lawmakers about prospective sales of armed drones and weapons systems to NATO members Italy and Turkey, while several U.S. allies in the Persian Gulf have been pressing Washington to authorize drone sales, officials said.
The Pentagon’s proposed sales have set off a behind-the-scenes debate between the administration and some members of Congress over whether the U.S. should speed the spread of a technology that will allow other countries to carry out military strikes by remote control.
The growing debate comes at a time when human-rights groups are stepping up their campaign against the Obama administration’s use of drones to kill suspected militants around the world.
So far, the U.S. has sold unarmed drones to several countries, including Italy, but has only allowed sales of armed drones to Britain, citing its relationship with the U.S. and large troop presence in Afghanistan.
«There are some military technologies that I believe should not be shared with other countries, regardless of how close our partnership,» said Senate Intelligence Committee Chairwoman Dianne Feinstein, a California Democrat. «The United States should be trying to control the proliferation of certain weapons, and I would put armed UAVs in that category.»
The Pentagon also wants to sell Turkey up to two armed drones and four surveillance drones, according to officials briefed on the discussions. But they say the Turkey deal is unlikely to move forward if lawmakers refuse to sign off on the Italian sale.
U.S. officials said that the deal could be a hard sell in Congress, where many lawmakers are concerned about the deterioration in Turkey’s relationship with longtime ally Israel. Some lawmakers have threatened to block far less sensitive arms sales to Turkey to protest Ankara’s stance toward Israel.
Several of America’s allies in the Persian Gulf region are also pushing to purchase armed drones. U.S. officials say such requests could also prove controversial in Congress because of lawmakers’ concerns about the potential impact on Israel’s military edge in the region.
Supporters of the proposed sales say that providing armed drones to America’s closest NATO allies would allow the alliance to increase its reconnaissance capabilities.
Advocates of the sales say U.S. allies would use drones to protect their forces in Afghanistan and to hunt down suspected terrorists, much as the U.S. does in hot spots around the world. Officials say the sales would also, over time, reduce NATO’s dependence on the U.S. for drone capabilities.
U.S. officials, including Mr. Panetta, have complained that America’s NATO allies haven’t built up their own reconnaissance capabilities and are too dependent on the U.S.

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