Qatar purchases 12 French fighter jets

DOHA, Dec. 7 (Xinhua) -- Qatar has signed a deal with France to buy 12 French Rafale fighter jets, local media reported on Thursday.

The deal was among many contracts signed between the two countries during the state visit to Qatar of French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday.

It was also announced that the two sides were negotiating over the purchase of 300 VBCI armored vehicles from French firm Nexter and a contract worth some 3 billion euros (3.54 billion U.S. dollars) over the management of the Doha metro for 20 years.

The total value of the deals was 12 billion euros (14.14 billion U.S. dollars).

Qatar has been suffering from an ongoing blockade imposed on it since June 5 by Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates.

The tiny Gulf state is trying to overcome the impacts of the siege by strengthening military ties with and purchasing arms from the United States, Russia and Britain. Enditem