The Pergau Dam Affair: Civil Aid and Arms Exports

Abstract

During the 1980s ministers were active in promoting the British arms industry world-wide. We saw in the study of arms to Iraq (chapter 8) that the Export Credit Guarantee Department (ECGD) was one agency used during the 1980s by the British Government to lubricate arms sales to Iraq in contradiction of the Government’s own guidelines (Scott 1996 D2: D3). Asia and the Far East were increasingly important markets for British defence sales and exports of military material rose from £73 million in 1985 to £306 million in 1989. Total UK sales to the region amounted to almost £1.5 billion between 1987 and 1993 (FAC 1994(2): 118). Malaysia alone bought some £50 million worth of arms from the UK between 1988 and 1992 (ibid: 115–18).

The Government do not link arms sales and aid. Nor do we use the aid programme to finance arms sales.

(FCO Minister, Lennox-Boyd, House of Commons Debate, 4 March 1994)