The Foreign Relations and Constitutional Affairs committees of the Senate met this Tuesday to evaluate the bill that approves the Memorandum of Understanding between Paraguay and the United States on the acquisition of defense articles and services.
The meeting was attended by the Minister of National Defense, Gen. (R) Óscar González Cañete, accompanied by senior military authorities, and focused exclusively on the analysis of the memorandum signed in Asunción on May 21, 2025 between the Paraguayan Ministry of Defense and the US Department of Defense.
At the beginning of the session, Senator Yolanda Paredes requested that the meeting be reserved, although Senator Zacarías Irún clarified that this was not possible due to the mixed modality of the session. For his part, Minister González Cañete assured that the entire process is carried out with full transparency.
During his speech, the Defense Minister explained that the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program allows Paraguay to access military equipment provided by both private companies and the United States government itself, which acts as guarantor of the transactions. He noted that this option is only available to countries that meet specific requirements and detailed existing subprograms, including those that provide for equipment donations with shipping and maintenance costs covered by the US, which are only accessed after joining the general program.
After analyzing the document, both commissions issued a majority favorable opinion to the memorandum, paving the way for its final approval in the Senate.
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