France and Saudi Arabia Tuesday signed on arms contract providing for the sale of $3.5 billion of French-mode worships, helicopters and missiles to the oil-rich kingdom. The contract, is one of the largest ever signed by a West European, country. France will build four missile warships and two tankers for the Saudi navy and will equip them with its latest model of sea-to-sea missiles, the Otomat. France will also provide Saudi Arabia with Dauphin helicopters armed with air-to-sea missiles and on elaborate radar computer enabling them to serve as the “fire guidance brains” for the Saudi warships. Several hundred Saudi technicians and naval personnel will be trained in France and French engineers will help maintain the Saudi vessels.
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