Israel's Minister of Defense Avigdor Liberman made an unexpected reference yesterday to recent reports about the connection between German shipbuilder ThyssenKrupp, which is building the Israeli navy's latest submarine. He told the Knesset Finance Committee that, "The Iranian stake in the submarine manufacturer was known and it is not what it seems."
Liberman's comment contradicts a statement made several days ago by the Ministry of Defense regarding the shares held by the Iranians in ThyssenKrupp, which said simply that, "The subject is not known to us."
Answering a question during the Finance Committee's discussions, Liberman said, "The subject of the Iranian stake in the submarine manufacturer was known and the contract on this matter was closed long before I came into this job. In any event, the full picture is different than the reports on the subject."
He added, "Whoever looks at the minutes of the discussions that took place in the cabinet and the national security council would see that it was not as it seems and how we heard it from the media. The facts and the reality are far from that being portrayed on our screens. The company is run by its management and board of directors and the partnership (with Iran) is negligible."
According to reports in the Israeli media, the Iranian government holds a 4.5% stake in ThyssenKrupp.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on December 7, 2016
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