CAIRO: Washington DC-based General Dynamics announced this week it won two contracts to work with the Saudi Arabian government. According to the US company, it won the contracts from the US Army to work on behalf of the Royal Saudi Land Forces. Awarded by the army's TACOM Lifecycle Management Command, the deals are continuations of an upgrade plan for the Saudi fleet of Abram tanks. The move, however, is not likely to go over well in the Middle East, where activists and political leaders have condemned the military aid given to authoritarian governments, which have used American-made military ordnance against civilians in uprisings across the Arab world. General Dynamics Land Systems unit based in Sterling Heights, Michigan will be responsible for providing labor and materials to convert 102 M1A2 tanks to M1A2s design to increase efficiency and ability. The actual work will be completed by employees at the Joint Systems Manufacturing Center in Lima, Ohio, the company said. 60 of the tank conversions are set to be completed by August 30, 2012 and 42 by September 30, 2012. The two contracts are worth $12.6 Million and $29.8 Million with a combined value of up to $42.4 Million. BM
