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Iraq seeks thousands of tank rounds

The government of Iraq has asked the United States for thousands of M1A1 Abrams tank rounds.

By Richard Tomkins
M1A1 Abrams tanks in Iraqi service. (Daneille Hendrix, U.S. Army)
M1A1 Abrams tanks in Iraqi service. (Daneille Hendrix, U.S. Army)

WASHINGTON, Oct. 21 (UPI) -- The sale of thousands of rounds of tank ammunition to Iraq under the Foreign Military Sales program has been presented to Congress

The proposed sale was detailed by the U.S. Defense Security Cooperation Agency, which said the U.S. State Department had already given its approval for the deal, which carries a value of an estimated $600 million.

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"The proposed sale of the ammunition and support will advance Iraq's efforts to develop an integrated ground defense capability to support a strong national defense," the agency said in its notification to Congress. "This will enable the Iraqi government to sustain its efforts to establish and maintain stability."

The request from Iraq for M1A1 Abrams tank rounds includes 10,000 M83 120mm high-explosive anti-tank munitions, 10,000 M865 120mm kinetic energy warheads, 10,000 M865 120mm KEW-A1, and 16,000 M830 120mm HEAT-MP-T tank ammunition.

Also included are technical and logistics support services and other support.

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