Netherlands Infomation Services BV, THE HAGUE: The Socialist Party and Green Left want the Netherlands to withdraw from the Joint Strike Fighter project. The two left-wing opposition parties argue that the financial risks involved in the construction of the new fighter plane are a total unknown.
They cite a Dutch Audit Office report which says the Dutch defence ministry is being given too little information by the plane's manufacturer, the US company Lockheed Martin. Dutch Defence Minister Eimert van Middelkoop disagrees with the report, saying the costs will become clear by 2010.
The Netherlands has been involved since 2002 in the development of the Joint Strike Fighter which is designed to replace the Dutch air force's F16s. The government is to make a final decision on whether to buy the new planes in three years' time.
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