The rise of a great power: starting with military industry

Chapter 231 The Only Condition

Capital Hotel.

Al personally hosted Liu Tao for dinner.

After three rounds of drinks, the atmosphere became harmonious.

Liu Tao was very shocked. He had not expected that it was the troops led by Rashid that shot down 6 F15s and 8 F16s of the Israeli Air Force. Moreover, Rashid was promoted to colonel because of this achievement. His troops were also expanded into an armored division and belonged to the Iraqi Republican Guard. He became Saddam's trusted general.

This is also because the media is not well developed nowadays. Otherwise, once the publicity is released, the Type 80 self-propelled anti-aircraft gun, anti-aircraft machine gun, and "Vanguard" air defense missile will become famous, and there will be no need to worry about not having orders.

Of course he thinks this is pretty good, making money in a low-key manner without being targeted.

Liu Tao is a little wary of the internationally famous 'Mossad'. Who knows if these lunatics will do something crazy.

Now they are not on the stage, but off the stage.

Anyway, he is an arms dealer. If Iraq can buy it, Israel can certainly buy it too!
“400辆80式坦克、200辆80式自行高炮和相应5个基数炮弹，2000枚便携式防空导弹。”阿尔说道：“按照之前的价格，总合同38亿美元，我们的条件是，明年起码要为我们提供150辆80式坦克、70辆80式自行高炮以及相应基数炮弹以及1000枚便携式防空导弹。”

Liu Tao frowned.

This rich guy is throwing money at him.

A contract worth 38 billion US dollars, this is a big contract, which makes Liu Tao's heart beat fast.

However, these conditions are a bit harsh. After all, the quantity of self-propelled anti-aircraft guns and tanks required to be delivered is really too large.

Next year, we will not only have to deliver part of the orders from Iraq, but also part of the orders from Saudi Arabia and Libya.

If all of this is delivered to Iraq, what will happen to Saudi Arabia and Libya?
What's more, according to the production capacity plan, the output for the whole year next year may not be enough to be delivered to Iraq.

give up! ?
Giving up on making money has never been Liu Tao’s personality.

With this order, the foreign exchange alone can help the country a lot.

Liu Tao tapped his fingers on the table lightly, and after a moment of hesitation, he said, "I can agree to this condition, but I can't pay it at the previous price. As you know, the US dollar is depreciating now. The total contract is 45 billion US dollars!"

"After this year, perhaps if we purchase more next year, it will cost 50 billion US dollars or even 60 billion US dollars!" Liu Tao said calmly.

Previously, the US inflation rate reached 13.5%, and the US Treasury bond interest rate was also as high as 11%. It can even be said that such a high Treasury bond interest rate still cannot keep up with the inflation level.

The depreciation of the US dollar is visible to the naked eye and anyone can feel it.

This is also the reason why American weapons and equipment are becoming more and more expensive.

Al frowned slightly, then felt relieved.

After the outbreak of the Iran-Iraq War, whenever Iraq bought weapons from Europe, the United States or the Soviet Union, the prices would rise sharply without exception. It was not uncommon for the prices to double.

Liu Tao’s price has only increased by about 18.4%, which is already a completely fair price.

It can even be said that it is not as good as the depreciation of the US dollar since this year.

"No problem!" Al nodded and agreed to Liu Tao's terms. Both parties were very efficient and signed the contract agreement in less than a day.

Even the deposit was paid within two days. Liu Tao was shocked by such wealth and inhumanity.

But then again, although the Iran-Iraq War broke out, Iraq's oil exports were not affected at all. In fact, due to the increase in oil prices, oil revenue was even higher than before the war.

Although the current oil price has not exceeded $40 per barrel like when the war just started, because Persia's oil can hardly be exported, the crude oil price still remains at a high level of $36.8 per barrel.

It is easy to make money by extracting oil, so you don’t feel bad about spending money.

Although Liu Tao's order was large, he knew that both Iran and Iraq had purchased a large amount of weapons and ammunition during this period, and even the Persians had purchased J-5, J-6, and J-7.

As long as you can fly a plane, you can fly it to fight, even if you never come back.

On the battlefield, although the Persians stabilized their front line, the overall situation was still not favorable to Persia. No matter which way it was displayed, Iraq still had the upper hand.

If Persia did not have a large amount of foreign exchange reserves and could continuously purchase weapons and ammunition from outside, it would probably have collapsed by now.

On Monday morning, Liu Tao arrived at the Fifth Ministry of Machine Building and reported his work to his superiors.

"During this period, we have developed the Type 81 infantry fighting vehicle, which has reached world-class level and has good defense capabilities and firepower, and can help infantry improve their mobile combat capabilities." Liu Tao reported on the Type 81 infantry fighting vehicle. Although he had reported to Wang Baoguo on the phone before, it was not as detailed as a face-to-face report.

A group of leaders wrote in their notes that China had actually obtained a BMP-1 infantry fighting vehicle from Egypt not long ago, and the Fifth Ministry of Machine Building was planning to organize a team of experts to conduct research on infantry fighting vehicles and thus develop an infantry fighting vehicle belonging to China.

As for infantry fighting vehicles, leaders are aware of their role.

Infantry fighting vehicles are mainly used to cooperate with tanks in combat. Their mission is to quickly maneuver infantry units and destroy enemy light armored vehicles, infantry anti-tank fire points, manpower and low-flying targets.

It can be said that infantry fighting vehicles occupy a very important position in mechanized forces such as the Soviet Army and the US Army. It is precisely because of a large number of infantry fighting vehicles that the Soviet Army and the US Army have built mechanized forces.

Unexpectedly, just when they were about to organize a team of experts to develop an infantry fighting vehicle, Liu Tao brought the latest news that an advanced infantry fighting vehicle had been developed.

No one had any doubts about Liu Tao.

By developing one weapon after another, Liu Tao has already established his position in China's firearms and armored vehicle fields. He is undoubtedly the number one and the most authoritative expert.

Liu Tao was even the number one in the field of artillery.

Whether it was a self-propelled anti-aircraft gun or a tank gun, those developed by Liu Tao were far ahead of China's previous anti-aircraft guns and tank guns.

"The Type 81 infantry fighting vehicle has a crew of three and can carry seven people," Liu Tao said. "At present, our Panshan Machinery Factory is already conducting trial production. The infantry fighting vehicles produced will be equipped with the combined forces brigade and tested by the combined forces brigade."

"Comrade Liu Tao, how much does the Type 81 infantry fighting vehicle cost?" a leader asked, obviously worried that the price was too high and the troops could not afford it.

It is a good thing that Liu Tao developed the Type 81 infantry fighting vehicle. It can solve the problem of whether or not my country has infantry fighting vehicles and fill the gap in China's military industry in this area.

But the more advanced the weapon, the higher the cost.

Sometimes, even if Panshan Machinery Factory gives the product at cost price and does not make any profit, the troops still think it is too expensive and cannot afford it!

Just like the Type 80 self-propelled anti-aircraft gun and Type 80 tank, their performance is naturally extremely advanced and has reached the world's leading level. The troops are extremely envious of them, but they do not purchase them in large quantities because they think they are too expensive!
(End of this chapter)