Justice and Constitutional Development Minister Jeff Radebe told Members of Parliament (MPs) on Wednesday he would not discuss details of arms deals involving nations like Syria, prompting accusations that he was stonewalling questions on weapons trade with "rogue States".

Radebe, who chairs the National Conventional Arms Control Committee (NCACC), presented Parliament's Defence Committee with extracts of the body's report for 2008, the first time it has been made public in four years.

He revealed that South Africa last year sold arms worth R5,8-billion to countries including Iraq, Pakistan, Sudan and Saudi Arabia but gave no breakdown of the categories of weapons they received.

Radebe flatly refused calls from the Democratic Alliance (DA) to discuss the alleged sale of sniper rifles to Syria and ammunition to Zimbabwe.

"It would not be appropriate to go into every transaction we have authorised and not authorised."

The Minister said he would confine himself to a press statement made on August 6, after the DA claimed it had information that South Africa had recently concluded "ten dodgy arms deals".

"That response is as valid today as it was on August 6," he said.

The DA had alleged that South Africa sold Libya glide bombs that can deliver nuclear, chemical and biological weapons and provided multiple grenade launchers to Libya, Syria and Venezuela.

The party said the NCACC was mulling the sale of thousands of aviator G-suits to Iran, attempting to sell thousands of sniper rifles to Syria and millions of rounds of ammunition to Zimbabwe.

The DA also accused the body of authorising the demonstration of radar warning receivers for submarines in North Korea and the sale of aviator G-suits to Iran.

Radebe on August 6 denied any deals with Iran and North Korea, defended the right to trade with Venezuela, and said there were no United Nations Security Council resolutions banning arms trade with Libya and Zimbabwe.

He confirmed that the NCACC had approved the sale of armed personnel carriers to Libya.

DA MP David Maynier reacted at the Minister's refusal to go further, saying: "There are not reasonable and justifiable grounds not to disclose the information".

Radebe shot back: "It is totally inappropriate for you to insinuate that I have not provided information to Parliament."

He added that though he had the information he could not go beyond the agenda of Wednesday's meeting, which had been called to deal with the annual report and inform members how the NCACC functioned.

The Minister was backed up by chairperson Mnyamezeli Booi, who said that Maynier failed to inform him that he wanted an opportunity to ask the Minister for details of deals.

Maynier countered that he had made his aims clear in three meetings with Booi on Tuesday where he persuaded the chairperson to open Wednesday's ministerial briefing to the public.

He said he "absolutely" believed Radebe and Booi were "deliberately stonewalling".

"The aim was to open the meeting and contract the scope."

Political analyst Judith February from Idasa agreed, saying the Minister had "kicked to touch".

Maynier said he would continue to fight to get the information made public because he suspected that though the deal with Iran was ditched, it pointed to potential sanctions-busting by a South African company.

"The company involved does not make G suits. I have a theory. I would suggest they came from a country that has a sanctions regime against Iran."

Maynier has refused to bow to pressure from ANC MPs on the committee to reveal his sources, prompting calls earlier this month that he be kicked out for compromising national security.

On Wednesday, shortly after the committee ended its meeting, ANC chief whip Mathole Motshekga issued a statement saying he would ask Speaker Max Sisulu to remove Maynier from the committee for illegally obtaining and disclosing classified information.