French media report: Sarkozy 'knew about' arms commissions company
The company was allegedly used to channel arms sales commissions to Pakistan.
PARIS:
President Nicolas Sarkozy knew about a shell company used to channel arms sales commissions in the 1990s, French media said on Monday, amid a probe into alleged illegal party funding in France.
The Liberation daily quoted testimony to a judge from a former senior civil servant that in 1994 then-budget minister Sarkozy authorised the creation of Luxembourg-based company Heine to pay intermediaries in arms deals, notably with Pakistan.
"Clearly the budget minister necessarily gave his agreement for the creation of Heine," Gerard-Philippe Menayas, former head of the DCNI defence ministry agency in charge of naval exports, was quoted as saying when interviewed on December 2. Several people, including aides to Sarkozy, are accused of going to Switzerland to pick up cases of cash channelled through Heine to finance then prime minister’s 1995 presidential election campaign.
The payment of arms sales commissions was legal in France until 2000, but the payment of kickbacks back to France was and is illegal. The probe focuses on the 1994 sale of submarines to Pakistan and frigates to Saudi Arabia.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 3rd, 2012.
President Nicolas Sarkozy knew about a shell company used to channel arms sales commissions in the 1990s, French media said on Monday, amid a probe into alleged illegal party funding in France.
The Liberation daily quoted testimony to a judge from a former senior civil servant that in 1994 then-budget minister Sarkozy authorised the creation of Luxembourg-based company Heine to pay intermediaries in arms deals, notably with Pakistan.
"Clearly the budget minister necessarily gave his agreement for the creation of Heine," Gerard-Philippe Menayas, former head of the DCNI defence ministry agency in charge of naval exports, was quoted as saying when interviewed on December 2. Several people, including aides to Sarkozy, are accused of going to Switzerland to pick up cases of cash channelled through Heine to finance then prime minister’s 1995 presidential election campaign.
The payment of arms sales commissions was legal in France until 2000, but the payment of kickbacks back to France was and is illegal. The probe focuses on the 1994 sale of submarines to Pakistan and frigates to Saudi Arabia.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 3rd, 2012.