Report: Algeria purchased from Europe 2.8 billion Euros worth of arms

A newly published study showed that arms exports from EU Member States to Arab countries between 2009 and 2012, reached about 40 billion Euros, and Algeria ranked fourth in the list of countries receiving European weapon supplies preceded by Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and the Sultanate of Oman.

According to the report, worked out by the Belgian Institute of peace, which is based in Brussels, the EU arms exports to the Arab world came as follows: Saudi Arabia for 15.3 billion Euros,  the United Arab Emirates: 7 billion Euros, the Sultanate of Oman: 4.7 billion Euros, Algeria: 2.8 billion Euros, Morocco: 2.3 billion Euros, Kuwait: 1.5 billion Euros and lastly Egypt for 1.2 billion Euros.

Their largest supplier was France, which accounted for almost €1.6 billion of that total.

The increasing sales have come despite the Arab Spring and show little change in export policy, with record licenses in many categories.