Bahrain Mirror: The United States announced a $350 million sale of military equipment and the refurbishing of helicopters and missile launchers to Bahrain.

The Defense Security Cooperation Agency confirmed in a statement that the State Department has made a determination approving a possible Foreign Military Sale to the Government of Bahrain of equipment and services to refurbish 24 Excess Defense Article (EDA) AH-1W multi-role helicopters and missile launchers. The estimated total cost is $350 million. The deal includes support, training, and other related elements of logistics.

The Defense Security Cooperation Agency delivered the required certification notifying Congress of this possible sale and believed that this proposed sale will support the foreign policy and national security objectives of the United States by helping to improve the security of a Major Non-NATO ally that is an important force for political stability and economic progress in the Middle East.

This deal comes in light of the high public debt of Bahrain which resorted to raising taxes to fill the budget deficit.

The Ministry of Finance and Economy recently confirmed that the total public debt amounted, as of December 2022, to about 16.7 billion dinars, equivalent to 101% of GDP in 2022. 

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