An interview at socialistworker.org-
Raytheon is one of the many companies that fuels war for profit. But the Raytheon company also has a political agenda. Adam Cherill, the business manager of Raytheon, if my memory is correct, has said that the Palestinian people have no connection to the land of Palestine–that they have no culture, no society and no historical ties to the land. Now, that is not a commercial statement. That is a political statement.
The Raytheon company is closely tied to the top brass of the Pentagon. So they are complicit in everything that happens in the Middle East. In particular, they are complicit in war crimes committed through the use of Raytheon munitions.
We know that towards the end of the Israeli-Lebanon conflict in the summer of 2006, Raytheon rushed so-called bunker-buster bombs. They delivered a rush-order, of these bombs just a short time before the war ended so that Israel could continue bombing.
2 June, 2008 at 4:54 pm
No surprise there. That enables them to sell them top of the line missile system to the IDF, who in turn modify them and sell them to other nations. Believing in Betz Israel allows for a big blind spot when it comes to your “allies” screwing you over.
2 June, 2008 at 8:57 pm
Yeah I think the idea arms companies are just like any other industry without a political level is a myth thy like to propagate. In this plants case all the main parties supported it under that catch all excuse ‘jobs’. The peace dividend for N. Ireland was an arms company!
2 June, 2008 at 11:07 pm
Wonder if they played any part in the growth of Hamas?? That would have tied in nicely with my latest post (hint hint!).
3 June, 2008 at 12:17 am
RSS has just informed me of your work. I shall go and peruse.
1 September, 2008 at 11:17 am
Was anyone aware of the links between Tony Blair’s role as Envoy in the Middle East and Raytheon?
Upon his retirement in June 2007, Tony Blair assumed the ‘unpaid’ role of Peace Envoy to the Middle East. He was also appointed as an advisor to the major US Investment Bank, JP Morgan Chase in a deal worth over £1 million per year.
His employers at JP Morgan Chase are major shareholders in Raytheon, having invested close to $80 million in 1997 (that figure is likely to have since increased).
Reporters at the time asked a Government Spokesman if there was likely to be a conflict of interests in is roles as both envoy and advisor. The response? ‘Ask Tony Blair’.
Closer scrutiny also needs to be made of New Labour’s pro-Israel stance. Both Blair and Gordon Brown are members of ‘Labour Friends Of Israel’ – a pro-Israeli interest group operating in the UK Parliament (there is also a ‘Conservative Friends of Israel’ group).
Although largely ignored by the press at the time, the ‘Labour Friends Of Israel’ group featured at the centre of the ‘Donorgate Scandal’ of 2007. David Abrahams donated at least £548,850 since 2003, via at least two work colleagues, his solicitor and the wife of an employee – an illegal activity. Abrahams at the time ranked as the third biggest Labour donor. Another senior member of ‘Labour Friends of Israel’ was Lord Michael Levy, the disgraced peer at the centre of Blair’s ‘Cash For Peerages Scandal’ (Blair first met Lord Levy at a ‘Friends of Israel’ function in North London).
Also named in the ‘Cash For Peerages Scandal’ was Lord Sainsbury – who similarly faced an inquiry over his £2 million loan to the party. Sainsbury too is a ‘Labour Freinds of Israel’ member (David Goldman – the Chairman of an Israeli telecommunications equipment company BATM Advanced Communications is also reported to have made several 5-figure donations). He too is an LFI member.
John Mendelsohn – Mr Big at the LFI and a passionate Zionist is now Gordon Brown’s party fundraiser.
Of course we all know about the influence of America’s pro-Israeli lobby, AIPAC and their ability to influence the Senate, but too little has been made of pro-Israeli interest groups in the UK’s own backyard.
The image of Blair as somekind of ‘lacky’ or sidekick to Bush has served as a rather convenient cover for Britain’s own vested interests in this region. The standard party line is that Britain was pulled somewhat reluctantly into the Middle-Eastern conflict because of its loyalty to the USA, when its quite clear that Britain’s actions were more the result of influence built up at home.
Although interesting to see that Fidelity Investments (US), the largest shareholders in Trinity Mirror (owner of the Daily Mirror, Sunday Mirror, People, and Sunday Mail) are also major shareholders in Raytheon Defense. Little wonder that Piers Morgan was ejected from the Daily Mirror after he published the ‘fake’ photos of UK soldiers urinating on Iraq prisoners. Afterall, it didn’t do much for the war effort.
More stuff below. Interesting ideas but you have to look at the comments area for more on Raytheon and Blair.
http://www.thesargeants.net/dblog/articolo.asp?articolo=165