RI's $420m jet bill covered

RI's $420m jet bill covered

LONDON (AFP): The British government will cover the US$420 million bill for the sale of Hawk jets to Indonesia after the beleaguered state said it was unable to keep up payments on its debt, it was reported Saturday.

The Independent newspaper said that despite this, London was prepared to go ahead with a further delivery of 16 Hawks worth half a billion dollars next year.

The paper said that the jet manufacturer British Aerospace had received a guarantee from the government that it would pay whatever parts of the debts it was unable to recover from Jakarta.

The sale of the jets has already been a controversial issue for Tony Blair's Labor government.

On its election in May 1997, Foreign Secretary Robin Cook said the new administration would promote a foreign policy with human rights at its core.

The continued export of arms to repressive regimes has been roundly criticized by human rights groups and by left wing Labor MPs.

The Independent said that Indonesia's total debt to Britain under the country's Export Credit Guarantee Scheme stood at US$2.9 billion, of which just under half is for arms.