A massive vote of confidence in Britain’s economy was how Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson described BAE Systems’ £5bn deal to sell 24 Typhoon fighter jets to Qatar. It’s also a massive vote of confidence in the willingness of the British to sell weapons to anyone whose money is good. Qatar is hardly a model of enlightened democracy. According to Williamson, these “formidable jets” will boost the Qatari military in its mission to “support stability in the region” and deliver “security at home”. But quite how isn’t entirely clear.
Qatar has been isolated by Egypt, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, and the Saudis, all of which have accused it of sponsoring terrorism. It has responded to this by ramping up military spending. The arms deal is destined to stoke tensions in one of the world’s more dangerous regions. So where will the stability arise from?
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