On Monday June 15th 2020 a Paris court handed prison sentences to six men found guilty of organising a vast political funding scam involving kickbacks on French weapons sales to Saudi Arabia and Pakistan in what has become known as the 'Karachi Affair'. It was the first time in France that a criminal court has established that a presidential election campaign – in this case involving Édouard Balladur in 1995 – was funded by kickbacks from state arms deals. It is, says Mediapart's Fabrice Arfi, an object lesson in the weaknesses of a democracy in the face of corruption.
The verdict delivered in the Karachi Affair on Monday June 15th is an historic one. According to legal experts, it is the first time in France that a criminal court has ruled that a presidential campaign – in this case involving prime minister Édouard Balladur in 1995 – was funded by kickbacks from state arms deals.
