Daimler opens office in Baghdad, Iraq
As a small step that could be considered a healthy vote of confidence in Iraq's return to stability, Mercedes has established a corporate representative office in Baghdad. Daimler set up shop in Erbil, Iraq last February, opening a training center that would get mechanics ready for coming Mercedes products. By installing a corporate representative, the company will have someone on the ground to figure out how best to introduce new Mercedes products to the country. The rep will focus on examining and developing the market for trucks and buses, which Daimler should have all to itself for a while.
[Source: Daimler]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Visnick 8:06AM (2/20/2009)
Sounds like they are expecting explosive sales growth....
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Sea Urchin 8:16AM (2/20/2009)
Holy Shia..t, they are going to Iraq?
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AirRaid 8:33AM (2/20/2009)
Daimler, notorious for jumping ship.
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The Oher Bob 8:35AM (2/20/2009)
Huh, and to think the Germans were against the invasion.
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sledge 10:07AM (2/20/2009)
The Germans were doing a lot more business pre-invasion then they are now (MB included) - it helps when your govt. doesn't like to get its business and politics mixed. So the invasion probably didn't help matters for them.
CB 9:50AM (2/20/2009)
I've noticed a precipitous reduction in media coverage of bad news from Iraq since President Obama took office. He must be a very effective military strategist to have completely turned things around in just under one month, especially given that the military leaders have not changed.
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jdemonto 8:55AM (2/20/2009)
I think this says alot about Iraq, it far more stable than the media lets us believe.
Jason
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jc 9:09AM (2/20/2009)
well they just wanted Bush out.
notYou 9:51AM (2/20/2009)
Correct. To bad our media has been committing malpractice by not reporting this accurately (if at all). That malpractice has provided the oxygen for people like Reid, Pelosi, Obama, Murtha, Cindy Sheehan, and others to relentlessly scream ludicrous statements like this one:
April 19th, 2007: "Now I believe, myself, that the secretary of state, the secretary of defense and you have to make your own decision as to what the president knows: that this war is lost, that the surge is not accomplishing anything," Harry Reid, D-Nev.
Quick, somebody call Reid and let him know Daimler disagrees.
Ben 11:36AM (2/20/2009)
actually you know what? i'm pretty sure the so called "mainstream liberal elite media" has admitted that Iraq is much more stable now than it has been at any point since 2003.
now Congressional Democrats on the other hand...that's a completely different story.
nardvark 9:42AM (2/20/2009)
Makes sense. This is a country that has had its infrastructure ignored for decades, which is experiencing massive reconstruction and foreign investment. All those new roads will need buses on them.
Pretty amazing though, how much it's turned the corner. Good thing we elected the guy who demonstrated an understanding of the situation, and pushed for the strategy that got us here.
Oh, crap, no we didn't.
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Richard S. 10:25AM (2/20/2009)
Now that the country is stabilized, the media will credit Obama with its success....
Regarding Mercedes, even terrorists need well running cars to place their car bombs.
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? 10:53AM (2/20/2009)
So, Daimler is going to sell leftover bendy buses in Iraq?
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Billy 4:02PM (2/20/2009)
Erbil is in the Kurdish area in northern Iraq. I place where you could walk around freely without the threats faced in Baghdad and other areas in the south. They do have to occasional bomb but have had none of the sectarian violence of the south. The Kurds don't put up with that crap. It is very peaceful up there. It makes sense that Daimler feels safe up there.
I would argue that at the height of the Iraq civil war it was worse than the media even reported it. They didn't have access to the most parts of the country. The only reason it has changed now is because they killed each other off, we bribed the hell out of the Sunnis, and Petraus has done some outstanding work.
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P.V. 5:28PM (2/20/2009)
Good God, what's with all of the super-sarcastic comments about Obama's leadership in Iraq?
At any rate, is that a real teaser, rendering, or Autoblog MS-Paint-job?
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Bomchickawahwah 8:04PM (2/20/2009)
Wow, I wonder what was in the benefit package for that job.
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