U.S. missile sale to Bahrain seen leading to regional arms race

WASHINGTON — The United States is prepared to undermine the Missile Technology Control Regime with the sale of 25 missiles to Bahrain, congressional sources said.

The Clinton administration has tried to stop other Western arms manufacturers from selling missiles to Gulf states, but the sources said the Defense Department is pressing for the sale of the Army Tactical Missile System [ATACMS] to Bahrain in an estimated $50 million deal. The missile, produced by Lockheed Martin, has several versions, including those with a range of 300 kilometers.

The MTCR bans missiles that is beyond the 300 kilometer range and 500 kilogram payload. To alleviate criticism of the missile deal, the sources said, the Pentagon would monitor missile storage facilities and launch code access.

The proposal would mark the first time the ATACMS is sold to an Arab country. Earlier this year, the United States approved sales to Singapore and Taiwan. Greece, Turkey and South Korea have already received the missile.

The planned sale to Bahrain comes as the Clinton administration has tried to stop other Western arms manufacturers from selling missiles to Gulf states.

Congressional sources are warning that the proposed U.S. missile sale to Bahrain will lead to a regional arms race. They add that Bahrain has no need for these missiles and point out that the emirate already hosts the U.S. Fifth Fleet.

Congressional staffers members were briefed last month by the State Department on proposed measures to ensure security of the missiles, used against Iraq in the 1991 Gulf war and designed to strike missile batteries and tank formations. The State Department is also reviewing Bahrain's request.

The sources said Washington's proposal of the missile sale is to encourage the pro-U.S. policy of Bahrain. They said the administration is pressing Congress for a quick decision that would allow the sale to be approved in the months remaining to President Bill Clinton's term.

"The U.S. has repeatedly berated other countries for potential violations of the missile regime, and will surely set a precedent that the regime's limits on the sale of ballistic missiles can be ignored or bent to suit one's needs," the Arms Trade Insider, a defense newsletter, said.

In a related development, the U.S. contractor Allied Research Corporation said on Thursday that its Belgian defense unit, MECAR S.A., has received a $21 million contract from an unidentified Middle East country. The contract calls for a range of medium-caliber conventional ammunition to be delivered over the next 12 months.