``The last big surge was after the first Gulf War'' against Iraq in 1991, when the U.S. helped countries in the region upgrade their military, William Hartung, an arms analyst for the Washington-based New America Foundation, said in an interview.

``It's possible that a quarter to one-third of this year's sales could be arming up Iraq, and with the oil price rise, Gulf states can afford to make purchases,'' said Hartung, who is based in New York. LINK