Liam Fox defends Mideast arms sales

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Britain should seek to retain a "healthy slice" of the defence market in the Middle East, Defence Secretary Liam Fox said today. David Cameron has faced criticism for including defence industry representatives in the trade delegation on his tour of the region, amid concerns that British-made equipment could be used to suppress the current wave of popular unrest.

The Foreign Office has already revoked a series of export licences for Libya and Bahrain in the wake of the government crackdowns on protesters in those countries.

Speaking at the Civitas think tank in London, Dr Fox said that such issues should be dealt with on a "case-by-case" basis, depending on how events developed in the countries concerned.

"We have to recognise that countries have a right of self-defence and not all of them have a defence industry so they will always buy externally," he said. "I want to make sure the United Kingdom - within the limits that we set ourselves ethically on defence exports - is getting a healthy slice of that.