Greece has agreed to donate 500 armored personnel carriers to Iraq's military. Officials said Athens relayed its intention to donate the BMP-1 APC to the Iraq Army. They said deliveries would take place through 2007.
The BMP-1 is a Soviet-origin infantry fighting vehicle procured by a range of Arab states. The tracked vehicle can accommodate 11 people and contains such armaments as a 73 mm gun and Sagger anti-tank guided missile. In 1977, Iraq procured about 900 BMP-1s from the Soviet Union. In 1990, the Iraqi military purchased an undetermined number of BMP-2s. |