"French Rockets In Iraq" Story Discredited

Yesterday Glenn Reynolds and others linked to a Reuters story about brand-new French anti-aircraft rockets found in Iraq. The rockets were supposedly manufactured in 2003, making them hyper-illegal and implying that France was actively arming Iraq during the buildup to Gulf War II:

WARSAW (Reuters) - Polish troops in Iraq have found four French-built advanced anti-aircraft missiles which were built this year, a Polish Defense Ministry spokesman told Reuters Friday.

According to Polish diplomats in Rome, the confusion was caused by an error made by Polish soldiers: the date on the French rockets was an expiration date, and not the date of manufacture. "The Minister of National Defense, Jerzy Szmajdzinski, expresses regret in connection with information on the alleged production date of the missiles. He has requested a full investigation into the incident and a report without delay".