Contact:Stephanie Gharakhanian, Peace Action Maine, Co-Coordinator (207) 772-0680

January 10, 2008

Last March, on the fourth anniversary of the beginning of the American war on Iraq, U.S. Senator Susan Collins and Maine Governor John Baldacci announced that Vingtech, a subsidiary of a Norwegian weapons manufacturer, would be establishing a plant and its U.S. headquarters in Biddeford, Maine.

At Vingtech’s official opening ceremony this morning, members of Peace Action Maine joined others in a protest against Senator Collins and Governor Baldacci.

Peace Action Maine maintains that the opening of Vingtech signifies the increasing degree to which Maine’s local economy is becoming dependent upon the perpetuation of war. Other weapons makers in Maine include Bushmaster Firearms (Windham), Saco Defense and Bath Iron Works. Both Saco Defense and Bath Iron Works are owned by General Dynamics, which is one of the largest weapons manufacturers in the world. According to Stephanie Gharakhanian, a co-coordinator at Peace Action Maine, “Maine’s local economy should not strive to benefit from corporations whose very existence depends upon the continuation and escalation of war in this world.” She added, “There is no reason to celebrate the arrival of such a company to this state.”

This morning, Peace Action Maine acted in solidarity with the over one hundred individuals who gathered at the State House in Augusta yesterday to protest the Governor’s plans to cut funds from programs that help the most vulnerable members of Maine’s society. Through the state’s Pine Tree Development Program, Vingtech will be paying little if any state income tax for the next ten years. In the words of Gharakhanian, “At what expense do we welcome corporations like Vingtech to Maine? This state should be ashamed that it gives tax breaks to weapons makers and budget cuts to social services.”