French fighter planes cause controversy in Colombia. Why?

An intense controversy over the purchase of French fighter planes was answered by the Colombian president, Gustavo Petro, who clarified in his social networks that they will not be acquired with resources from the recently sanctioned tax reform.

Different political sectors have criticized the open negotiation with France for the purchase of the Dassault Rafale combat aircraft. Opinions suggest that these resources should be allocated to social investment, health and education, reports RT.

Faced with criticism, the Colombian president clarified in a trill that the resources obtained from the tax reform, which is proposed to raise 20 trillion pesos (about 3.9 billion dollars) from 2023 to 2026, will not be used for the military aircrafts. In addition, he expressed that the money from the social investment will not be used to pay for multipurpose fighters.

«My government’s priorities are and will be agrarian reform, zero hunger, free higher education, the well-being of mothers who are heads of households and the country’s youth», wrote Petro.

The response of the Presidency

In an extensive ‘thread’ published in the Presidency’s account, questions about the negotiation, which has not yet been closed, were answered, and it was specified that if it is consummated, disbursements will begin to be made within five years.

On December 17, Petro referred to the need to renew the fleet of combat aircraft in the South American country during the promotion ceremony of 42 generals and admirals of the Military Forces, reports Cambio.

On that occasion, the Colombian president said that the Kfir planes, of Israeli origin, should be changed. «A decision that will have a billion-dollar and strategic cost that the wives of the current pilots will be very grateful to me for», he added.

The text of the Presidency states that «the process of renewing the air superiority fleet is a matter of national sovereignty, the fight against organized crime and air interdiction».

According to these trills, the current fleet has more than 42 years of use, of which 30 have elapsed in Colombia.

The South American country – the Executive specifies – is «practically the only operator of Kfir aircraft», which implies that since more of these fighter-bombers or their spare parts are not produced, there is «an unsustainable capacity», which means that flying in these conditions is expensive and risky.

«With the current fleet there have been four accidents. It is not enough to have pilots with attitude, dedication and determination, but also adequate and modern equipment to avoid these incidents».

For the Colombian government, the current state of the aircraft, manufactured in the 1970s, «makes it difficult to take actions to guarantee air interdiction, the fight against organized crime and national sovereignty».French planes

For Bogotá, the Dassault Rafale aircraft proposal «is one of the best in price, efficiency and operability». According to the data presented by the Presidency, «an hour of flight of a Rafale plane is 30% cheaper than that of a Kfir», estimated at 89 million pesos (18,620 dollars).

In the same way, it is assured that «there are still no signed contracts» and that this negotiation is «the continuation of a process that began 12 years ago, through the Ministry of Defense and the Colombian Air Force».

Regarding the cost of these French fighters, it is estimated that they reach 15 billion pesos (about 3.1 million dollars) and not 26 billion pesos (5.4 million dollars), «as has been wrongly said».

Likewise, it is requested not to «confuse» the renewal process of the Kfir «with the contract that has been underway since 2021 for the acquisition of training aircraft».

«Both for the president and for the Minister of Defense, Iván Velásquez, it is important to leave a strengthened, modern and capable Military Forces, not for war, but to guarantee national sovereignty and citizen security», concludes the text.The critics

On social networks, several figures from the national political scene expressed their discontent, even without the decision being made.

Former senator and columnist Jorge Enrique Robledo published on his Twitter account that «Petro deceives and offends the intelligence of Colombians» when he asserts that the tax reform resources will not be invested in airplanes.

For her part, the member of the House of Representatives for the Green Alliance (Alianza Verde), Katherine Miranda, said that the «priority should be social and educational programs».

Along the same lines, Claudia Carrasquilla Minami, a former candidate for the Senate for the party of Uribe-based Radical Change (Cambio Radical), wondered in a trill about the origin of the resources. «They told us we were broke as a country», wrote Carrasquilla.