MOSCOW - Russia will offer Lebanon six combat helicopters, 31 tanks and 36 artillery pieces complete with ammunition and shells, Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri announced late Monday from Moscow.
"After the end of discussions between the Lebanese and Russian sides, Prime Minister Saad Hariri announced that Russia had decided to offer free aid to the Lebanese army," said a statement from Hariri's office.
The offer included "six Mi-24 helicopters, 31 T-72 assault tanks," as well as 36 mortars for 130-mm shells and around half million rounds of medium-calibre ammunition, the statement added.
In February, Lebanese President Michel Sleiman announced during a visit to Moscow that Russia had agreed to a request for Mi-24 helicopter gunships instead of the MIG-29 fighter jets originally promised in 2008.
On Sunday, on the eve of his two-day visit, Hariri had said he hoped to finalise that deal and said Lebanese helicopter pilots were already training for the new aircraft.
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http://www.middle-east-online.com/english/?id=42537
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