US scraps plan to buy more Russian helicopters

The Pentagon has called off plans to buy more Russian-made helicopters for Afghan forces in the face of strong opposition from lawmakers, officials said today.
The Defense Department had requested funds to purchase an additional 15 helicopters from Rosoboronexport but members of Congress and human rights groups had objected, citing the Russian arms firm's weapons sales to the Syrian regime.
The Pentagon "has re-evaluated requirements in consultation with Congress," spokeswoman Maureen Schumann said in an email.
"We currently do not have plans to purchase additional Mi-17s from Rosoboronexport," she said.
Defense officials and military commanders had argued the helicopters were vital to help bolster Afghanistan's security forces as NATO's US-led contingent prepares to withdraw by the end of next year.

The Pentagon, however, will honor its previous commitments, officials said. The department has already bought 63 Mi-17s for Afghanistan since 2011.

The move was welcomed by Human Rights First, which had accused President Barack Obama's administration of contradicting its own policy on Syria.
"This is both the right thing to do and the smart thing to do," said Sonni Efron of the rights advocacy group.
"It will save American taxpayers money while showing that the United States will not keep doing business as usual with firms that are profiting from enabling gross human rights violations."
For more than a year, Republican Senator John Cornyn led a drive in Congress to halt the helicopter deals.

In a contract with the Russian firm for 2013, the US government bought 30 helicopters worth USD 572 million. The proposed purchase for fiscal year 2014 that was cancelled involved 15 choppers worth USD 345 million.