EADS因向沙特军方进行可疑支付被调查
Senior EADS executives were alerted five years ago about questionable payments made to the Saudi Arabian military by a British subsidiary that supplies communications and surveillance equipment and is now the subject of a criminal probe by the UK's Serious Fraud Office.
欧洲航空防务与航天集团(EADS)的高管层五年前曾收到有关该集团旗下一家提供通讯和监控器材的英国子公司向沙特阿拉伯军方进行可疑支付的提醒。英国严重欺诈办公室（Serious Fraud Office，简称SFO）目前正在对此展开刑事调查。Mike Paterson, financial controller of the subsidiary, GPT Special Project Management, alerted his superiors about the payments as early as 2007, according to emails seen by the FT. He initially contacted GPT's managing director and the chief executive of Paradigm, GPT's parent and part of EADS's Astrium space division.
这家英国子公司名为“GPT特别项目管理”（GPT Special Project Management，以下简称GPT）。英国《金融时报》见到的电子邮件显示，GPT财务主管麦克•帕特森(Mike Paterson)早在2007年就向上级就可疑支付问题发出了警告。他最初联系了GPT的常务董事以及上级公司Paradigm的首席执行官。Paradigm是EADS下属Astrium公司太空业务部门的一部分。His fears centred on unexplained payments to the Cayman Island bank accounts of Simec International and Duranton International, which totalled £11.5m between 2007 and 2009. Mr Paterson also queried the gift of four cars valued at £201,000 to members of the Saudi royal family and military – as well as a £278,000 payment for the rental of a villa owned by a Saudi National Guard general. The payments were part of a government-to-government programme in which GPT's payments were processed by the UK's Ministry of Defence.
帕特森的担忧主要集中在GPT对Simec International和Duranton International在开曼群岛的银行账户无法解释的支付记录上。2007年至2009年间，GPT对这两家公司的支付总额达到1150万英镑。帕特森还对送给沙特王室及军方的四辆总价20.1万英镑的汽车以及向沙特国民卫队(Saudi National Guard)某将军名下别墅支付的27.8万英镑租金提出质疑。这些支付是一个政府间项目的一部分，GPT的款项支付由英国国防部(Ministry of Defence)进行处理。
The MOD declined to comment. The Saudi National Guard, Simec International and Duranton International could not be reached for comment.
英国国防部拒绝了记者的置评请求。记者未能联系到沙特国民卫队、Simec International以及Duranton International请其发表评论。When Mr Paterson first raised his concerns in 2007, the Saudi activities of defence contractors had sparked a contentious public debate in the UK. In 2006, then prime minister Tony Blair cited national security interests when he halted an SFO investigation into another government-to-government contract in Saudi Arabia involving BAE, the UK's largest defence contractor.
当帕特森在2007年首次提出自己的担忧时，国防承包商们在沙特的活动曾在英国引发一场激烈的公众争论。2006年，时任英国首相的托尼•布莱尔(Tony Blair)以国家安全利益为由停止了SFO对另一项在沙特履行的政府间合约的调查，英国第一大国防承包商英国宇航(BAE)牵涉其中。The US Department of Justice later fined BAE $400m and found it guilty of lying to the US government about its payments to contractors.
美国司法部(Department of Justice)后来对英国宇航罚款4亿美元，并认定该公司向美国政府谎报了其对其他承包商的支付情况。By 2010 Mr Paterson had alerted Pedro Montoya, EADS's chief compliance officer, but felt he was still being ignored. In an email dated October 2010, Mr Paterson wrote: “I think Pedro Montoya now ignoring me is sufficient indication we are wasting our time internally. Our concern for EADS future seems to be greater than [EADS's] first line managers . . .I need to make a decision whether I persevere internally, whilst suffering mind numbing boredom, or whether I take the statutory directors actions to the authorities.”
帕特森在2010年以前就已向EADS首席合规官佩德罗•蒙托亚(Pedro Montoya)发出过警告，但感到自己仍被忽略。帕特森在一封2010年10月的电子邮件中写道：“我认为佩德罗•蒙托亚目前忽视我的提醒已经足够说明通过组织内部途径是在浪费时间，我们似乎比（EADS的）一线管理者们更担心集团的未来发展……我必须决定是要一边忍受着麻痹心智的无聊情绪、一边继续寻求公司内部解决，还是要履行法定职责向有关当局报告问题。After initially threatening to take the case to the SFO, in late 2010 Mr Paterson instead transferred to another role within GPT. But in December 2010 a senior GPT official, Ian Foxley, fled Saudi Arabia with evidence of his and Mr Paterson's concerns, which he presented to both Mr Montoya and the SFO.
在一开始扬言将向SFO报告情况之后，帕特森于2010年底被调到GPT的另一个岗位上。但一位GPT高管伊恩•福克斯利(Ian Foxley)于2010年12月带着能够证实他和帕特森担忧的证据逃离了沙特，随后他将证据分别交给了蒙托亚和SFO。EADS and its executives declined to comment on the emails, while the company said it was co-operating with the SFO. EADS launched an internal investigation in the middle of 2011, which is continuing.
EADS及其高管层拒绝就这些电子邮件发表评论，但该集团表示正在配合SFO调查。EADS于2011年年中启动了内部调查，目前该调查仍在进行当中。
