Heckler & Koch sued the German Government for not granting exports license 43010154.

The lawsuit was filed at the Administrative Court of Frankfurt am Main, under Section 75 of the Administrative Procedure Code. According to the German law, a company could use the federal government’s authorities when an application has not been decided, without sufficient reasoning and in reasonable time.

The authority that was sued is the Federal Office of Economics and Export Control (BAFA), which did not allow H&K to export to Saudi Arabia crucial parts for the construction of G-36 rifles. The deal traces back to 2008, when the German Government approved the creation of a G-35 rifles production line in Saudi Arabia. However, one of the contract terms was that the compression springs, piston ring, fork and extractor of the rifles would be provided by the German company.

Since mid-2014, the German Government through BAFA decided not to allow the export of those parts. Therefore, the Saudi factory did not have the required parts to complete the G-36 construction. The decision was related to the criticism against the German Economy Minister, Sigmar Gabriel, for authorizing the export of weapons to countries with record of human rights violation. Small arms became the most sensitive matter in the country, given that they are not easily traced compared to major platforms such as tanks.