How the Chinese helped Iraq fight the US

Telegraph ^ | 12/14/03 | Con Coughlin.

[Maria S]

Chinese military advisers played a key role in helping Saddam's air defences withstand coalition air strikes in the months preceding Operation Iraqi Freedom, according to the Iraqi colonel who last week revealed details of Saddam's programme of weapons of mass destruction.

Lieutenant-Colonel al-Dabbagh, whose revelations about Saddam's battlefield WMD capability were revealed exclusively last week in the Telegraph, said he worked with a number of Chinese air-defence specialists during 2002 and the early part of this year to devise methods to stop coalition air strikes destroying Iraq's air defences.

"They arrived in the spring of 2002," said al-Dabbagh, who commanded an air defence unit in Iraq's Western desert. "They were personally greeted by Saddam and seemed very happy to be in Iraq. A couple of them even grew moustaches and wore keffiyehs (Arab scarves) around their heads so that they would look more like us."

Saddam is believed to have made a secret military deal with Beijing, which opposed the Iraq war at the United Nations security council. This was a clear breach of UN sanctions imposed on Iraq at the end of the Gulf War. The deal was struck in late 2001 after allied warplanes, which were then patrolling the no-fly zone in southern Iraq, attacked and destroyed several Iraqi radar installations. "Saddam went absolutely crazy," al-Dabbagh recalled. "He said, 'If we don't do something fast there will be no radar left in Iraq.' "

Initially, the Iraqis recruited about a dozen Serb air-defence specialists, who were each paid $100,000 (£57,000) a month to help devise a method to protect Iraq's air defences from attack. But their contract was terminated when their attempts to devise a mobile radar system failed because they could not find a truck large enough to carry the equipment.

According to al-Dabbagh, the Chinese were more successful and devised a sophisticated decoy device which forced missiles fired by allied warplanes to hit the wrong targets.

"The Chinese device only cost $25, but it was very successful," said al-Dabbagh. "The American pilot would return home thinking he had hit three of our radar units, when in fact all he would have hit were three $25 decoys."

Al-Dabbagh, who is now in hiding in Iraq after death threats following last week's revelations, said Saddam was delighted with the device and personally thanked the Chinese technicians, who performed an oriental dance in honour of the tyrant.

[Viking2002]

We need to sucker-punch the Chinese before they do it to us.

[Louisiana]

Dollar Store / Walmart Anti-radar decoy system.

[ChinaThreat]

Too late now. This should have happened in about 1992-4. A direct confrontation now with China is almost unthinkable. Thank Kintoon for this! Why do you think we are selling the Taiwaneese down the river.

[canuck_conservative]

Communist China....a continuing strategic threat to the U.S., and indeed, ALL of the western world....

[Map Kernow]

The PRC has been a terrorist nation since its inception. It is a terrorist nation now.

It has been an enemy of the United States since its inception. It is our enemy now.

Unless there's "regime change" there in China soon, we should begin now to prepare for a war with the PRC. Because "ready or not," they're planning for one with us.

[Thud]

ping

[squidly]

If what we saw back in March and April is at all indicative of Chinese air defense doctrine, I'd say we don't have much to worry about from them.

[Filibuster_60]

Iraq was under sanction for 12 years, and any help more substantial than they actually got from China, Russia & France would've fully exposed their duplicity and totally wrecked their standing in the US. Aid to Saddam had to be as inconspicuous as possible, read: not very extensive. If the Russians and Chinese truly wanted the Iraqis to shoot down our planes, they could've provided far more advanced equipment in far larger numbers - but doing so would've exposed them as our true enemies, which they wouldn't dare do.

[Tailgunner Joe]

bump

[tracer]

"How the Chinese helped Iraq fight the US"

By bankrolling the Krintons.....

[NormsRevenge]

bump

[68-69TonkinGulfYachtClub]

Ever wonder why you don't hear any bad news about China on FOX?

Here is a real eye opener

News Corporation List of Companies, Chairman and Chief Executive: K. Rupert Murdoch

Check the description of Chinabyte.com

Chinabyte.com is the merged entity between Beijing PDN Xinren Information Technology Co Ltd (www.chinabyte.com, www.cseek.com) and Chongqing Yesky Technology Co Ltd (www.yesky.com). PDN was established by News Corporation and People's Daily in 1995 while Yesky was established by Chinese PC Weekly and International Data Group in 1999. Both companies decided to merge to form the undisputable No 1 IT Chinese portal in April 2001.

Chinabyte aims to target the rapid expansion of both the PC market and Internet sector in China, providing technology and information consulting services and support to China's rapidly expanding information technolgy sector, establishing a world class Chinese site for all Chinese, as well as tapping the IT publication market. It has three websites, with Chinabyte.com focusing on advanced users, Yesky.com focusing on public users, while Cseek providing leading Chinese search engine services.

Number of Employees: 120 In Operation Since: 1995

[Dr. Marten]

Interesting..but whoever wrote this article did not do a very good job of proof-reading. Lots of mispelled words :P

[Maria S]

Con Coughlin wrote the article; since he's British, he spelled some of the words the way the folks in Great Britain spell them.