US criticised investigation axe
The Financial Times reports today that the United States made a “formal diplomatic protest to the British government” over the decision to abandon the Serious Fraud Office’s investigation into BAE’s export sales to Saudi Arabia.
Diplomatic insiders told the Financial Times that Washington said the British decision put the Blair government in breach of both the spirit and the letter of the OECD anti-corruption convention that requires member states to have a “level playing field” in which to conduct commercial relations.
The Labour Government have repeatedly cited national security implications as the justification for ending the investigation. According the the FT:
The US said this was in sharp contrast to the 1977 US law, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, which was behind US-led moves during the 1990s to secure international agreement on the OECD convention. “What we are really asking is how do we protect the integrity of the [anti-corruption] convention,” said a US official. Washington wants Britain to give a full explanation of its decisions at the OECD.
The full story is on ft.com whilst Ming Campbell’s reaction is on the Liberal Democrat website.
Posted in BAE, OECD, United States, arms exports |
April 27th, 2007 at 10:57 am
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