The Angolan government has bought arms from Russian in a $1 billion deal, Portuguese news agency Lusa said Thursday.
With the deal Angola becomes the principal purchaser of Russian arms on the continent, outstripping Uganda.
"Angola has inked with the state-owned
Rosoboronexport monopoly a $1billion million agreement which includes
military equipment support and the construction of an ammunition factory
in Angola for assistance after sale," the news agency said.
The agreement was reportedly signed last week when
Russian deputy prime minister Dmitri Rogozin visited Angola and
includes the supply of eight Sukhoi 30 hunt planes, transport Mi-17
helicopters, ordinance, light weapons and ammunition.
The Angolan foreign affairs ministry had said the visit was aimed at health, culture and fishing agreements.
Luanda was yet to react to the report but senior
members of the ruling MPLA and the opposition Unita and PRS said they
were unaware of such an agreement.
"I have no data about this matter, they are very
sensitive news having to do with our national security," Voice of
America quoted Mr André Mendes de Carvalho as saying.
"Let us wait if this will have an influence on our country’s general budget so that we have an opinion on it."
Russia ties
Angola, which is recovering from a decades of
civil war, maintains close ties with Cold War ally Russia. The southern
African country also maintains a tight lid on information about its
military capacity, which consumes a large chunk of its budget.
Such arms deals are also shrouded in deep secrecy, with campaign groups alleging that they mainly benefit the elite few.
In July UK-based Corruption Watch said some $750
million from an Angola Treasury arms deal with Russia was "missing",
while "another $400m could not be accounted for".
Meanwhile Angolan soldiers have invaded the
southwest of the Democratic Republic of Congo in pursuit of rebels and
had allegedly "kidnapped soldiers", AFP reported Thursday.
Angolan troops were pursuing (rebels) of the Front
for the Liberation of the Cabinda Enclave (FLEC) on to Congolese
territory, which they use as a rear base, the news agency reported.
FLEC has fought for independence for several
decades of Angola's oil-rich territory of Cabinda before opting for a
ceasefire in 2006.SOURCE: AFRICA REVIEW
