Badrak: Ukraine could stop making arms exports to Georgia
Ukraine could stop making arms exports to Georgia

Badrak: Ukraine could stop making arms exports to Georgia

Sep 3, 2010 at 15:25 | Interfax-Ukraine
Ukraine could stop making arms exports to Georgia, according to Director of the Center for Army Conversion and Disarmament Studies Valentyn Badrak.

"I think Ukraine over its whole history has shown a lot of understanding in the issue of arms exports and always stopped these supplies if somebody asked," he said.

"In 1998, [then United States Secretary of State] Madeleine Albright called on Ukraine not to participate in the realization of the Bushehr contract [on the delivery of turbines for the Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant in Iran] and we refused [to participate]. In 2004, the European Union asked us not to participate in arms exports to Macedonia, and we refused [to participate]. In 2009, Russia called on Ukraine not to deliver arms to Georgia, and I believe we will not export them," the head of the center said.

In 2008, following an armed conflict with Georgia, Russia accused Ukraine of allegedly being Georgia's foremost arms supplier.

At the same time, experts, including Russian ones, also said the Czech Republic, Israel, Turkey, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, and Uzbekistan were suppliers of arms to Georgia.

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