Banking committee will hold hearing on acquisition of port operations

[kpete]

Banking committee will hold hearing on acquisition of port operations
RAW STORY
Published: February 22, 2006



Sen. Paul Sarbanes (D-MD), the Ranking Democrat on the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee, announced that the Committee will hold a hearing on the acquisition of port operations in the Eastern and Southern United States, including the Port of Baltimore, by Dubai Ports World, which is owned by the Government of Dubai, RAW STORY has learned.

The following information was compiled from a release by Sarbanes' office.

Sarbanes serves as the Ranking Democrat on the Committee and will have an opportunity to question representatives from the Departments of Treasury, Homeland Security and Defense on the pending sale, including its potential impact on national security and the security of Port operations.

On Feb. 16, 2006, Sarbanes says he "joined Senator Richard Shelby, the Chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, in sending a letter to Treasury Secretary Snow expressing his deep concern over the acquisition and requesting a thorough review to determine its impact on U.S. national security."

Sarbanes and Shelby are urging the Treasury Secretary to appear as a witness before the Banking Committee on Mar. 2 to discuss the actions of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), a 12 member inter-agency committee that is chaired by the Department of the Treasury, and approved the acquisition of the port operations by Dubai Ports World

http://rawstory.com/news/2005/Democrat_will_hold_hearing_on_acquisition_0222.html