Britain, via Gibraltar, supports secret Pentagon deal

From the Washington Post:

"The Pentagon on Wednesday awarded a major jet fuel contract to Mina Corp., a secretive company that has declined to reveal its ownership but has nonetheless become a trusted partner with the U.S. military."

What a murky story. And, of course, there is the obligatory secrecy jurisdiction:

Wednesday's announcement of a new contract for Mina, which is registered in Gibraltar, follows a bitter row between the White House and the U.S. Central Command over how much information should be disclosed about the jet fuel deals. When the Pentagon awarded a contract to Mina last year, it cited unspecified "reasons of national security" to avoid competitive bidding.
. . .
The firms' secrecy has fueled allegations of corruption, particularly from officials in Kyrgyzstan

Gibraltar is a British Overseas Territory, and very secretive. Britain likes to pretend that these places, and its Crown Dependencies are self-governed, and there is not a lot Britain can do to promote good governance there - but they are not. Britain pulls the strings, where it matters.

That post is in response to this - on the same subject. We haven't analysed it ourselves yet - but we will.