Thales Group
 Thales Group  (Weapons manufacturer)    | |
|---|---|
| Predecessor | Thomson-CSF |
| Formation | 6 December 20000 |
| Parent organization | Thales Group |
| Headquarters | La Défense, France |
| Leader | Thales/CEO |
| Subgroups | • Thales Communications • Thales Air Defence • Thales Underwater Systems • Thales Nederland • Thales Australia • Thales Training & Simulation • Thales Alenia Space • Thales Optronics • Thales Rail Signalling Solutions • Thales Information System Belgium • Thales UK |
| Staff | 63,730 |
| Member of | Atlantic Council/Corporate Members |
| Sponsor of | University of Sydney/United States Studies Centre |
| Large French weapons manufacturer | |
The Thales Group in 2015, was the 11th largest weapons manufacturer worldwide, and a leading developer of drones.[1]
Contents
History
The group Thomson-CSF was founded in 1968. In 1982 François Mitterrand nationalized it and merged it with Thomson-Brandt. In December 2000, this was renamed the Thales Group.
Leadership
- Full article:
Thales/CEO
- Full article:
At least two Thales CEOs have visited the Bilderberg.
Corruption
Thales is said to be the only French defence group to permanently get mentioned in judicial affairs.[2]
Centralized slush fund
Michel Josserand, former head of THEC, a subsidiary of Thales, and Dominique Monleau, stated that Thales has a centralized slush fund that it uses to bribe officials.[3]
ANC
Schabir Shaik, the financial advisor to the president of the African National Congress party Jacob Zuma, was found guilty of organising a bribe on behalf of Thales.[4]
World Bank
In 2004 the World Bank’s Integrity Unit blacklisted Thales from any of the World Bank’s projects for one year because of its fraudulent practices in a US$6.9 million contract for the supply and maintenance of motorcycles in Cambodia.[5]
Around 1991-1993, French state owned Elf Aquitaine was involved (with other companies & countries) in selling frigates to Taiwan. On June 10, 2011 Thales Group and the French Government was ordered to pay 630 million euros (almost a billion US dollars) in fines after the courts heard that bribes had been paid to the Taiwanese government to win this large naval contract. Part (about 27%) of the responsibility was transferred to Thales Group because due to a series of takeovers, it held the legacy from Elf Aquitaine. To this day, this is the largest corruption case in French history. [6]
References
- ↑ https://electronicintifada.net/blogs/rania-khalek/sixty-percent-global-drone-exports-come-israel-new-data
- ↑ https://www.bakchich.info/international/2006/10/26/thales-49849
- ↑ http://iledere.parti-socialiste.fr/2008/06/06/thales-a-la-barre-du-tribunal/
- ↑ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4408020.stm
- ↑ http://go.worldbank.org/3P4YGLWC10 Cambodia: World Bank Sanctions Thales Engineering and Consulting S.A. and Others in Demobilization Project
- ↑ http://www.defenseprocurementnews.com/2011/06/10/thales-and-french-government-to-share-in-fine-for-taiwanese-bribes/
