Ace Wall Street Journal defense contracting reporters August Cole and Yochi J. Dreazen tell us that the Iraqi government wants to buy 36 F-16 fighters from the U.S. Air Force. The purchase might make Iraq less dependent on U.S. air support in fighting insurgents and would certainly fill the coffers of defense contracting behemoths Lockheed Martin and Boeing. But there’s concern "about the placement of advanced weaponry in the hands of a nascent government of a country struggling for stability."

This is a long, A1 story, and, indeed, seems important and interesting. But it’s hard to know what to make of the request. Does this show the myopia of Iraq’s Maliki government, looking to blow their budget on fancy planes while the country lacks working electricity? Is the story here that the Iraqi government could be taken over by U.S. enemies…who will have access to U.S. planes? The motives and meaning of Iraq’s military build-up might not be known for a few years.-MB

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