It's still aiding the enemy. No difference than aiding the Nazi's
This list includes companies that did business in Iraq as far back as 1975. The US and Iraq were very friendly in 1975 and remained on fairly good terms with Iraq right up until they invaded Kuwait (August 2, 1990). The list should differentiate the companies that did business before and after this date.
You will also notice that the 80 German companies were not publisized. Exactly what I would expect from die Tagezietung. The German companies make up more than half the list.
This particular article also does not mentioned that such things as medical instruments could get a company on this list. The electronic switches found in ultrasound machines can be used as detonation triggers in nuclear weapons (along with a number of other seeming innocuous things)
My final and last rant is that this story is soooo old. Almost 4 months. It came out shortly after the report was delivered to the Security Council.
[Comment was edited by mlamparty on March 17, 2003 at 07:25:16 PM]
Also, some of these companies probably provided goods that had dual purposes. For instance, I image HP just supplied computers that Iraq then used to design and electronically test nuclear weapons.
Funny how a German magazine innocently omits to mention all the German companies who have done exactly the same thing they now fingerpoint American companies for doing.
Yeah, that's how you build true credibility /sarcasm
earlclick
Good find, but not surprising. Companies, while made up of people, aren't human. HP can't feel loyalty or be patriotic. Honeywell could care less if you kill Americans or Iraqis with its weapon system components. Dupont will sell anyone chemicals. As long as they stay within US law in the US offices they don't care. Can't ship weapons components from the US... fine, ship it from Canada, or the UK or Saudi Arabia. Just another billion in their coffers.