Arms show in Nizhny Tagil reveals achievements of Russian defence industry

The RUSSIAN EXPO ARMS-2002 international show in Nizhny Tagil will be closed on Saturday.

It was held with the participation of about 200 enterprises from 22 Russian regions, including such prominent defence factories as the Uralvagonzavod, Izhmash, Tulamashzavod, the Zverev Krasnogorsk plant, Kurganmashzavod and others. For the first time, the show hosted foreign participants from Ukraine and Switzerland.

The exposition covering approximately 5,000 square metres was visited by representatives of about 20 countries, including the United States, Canada, Germany, Great Britain, Switzerland, Sweden, South Korea, Belgium and Kuwait. They saw the performance of the T-90S and the modernised T-72M1 tanks, range practice by the Grad and Smerch multiple-launch rocket systems, combat characteristics of the BMP-3 mechanised infantry combat vehicle, BTR-80A and modernised BTR-70 armoured personnel carriers, demonstration launches of the Metis and Shturm anti-tank missiles and another 1,500 pieces of various armaments.

The T-90S missile-cannon tank has already been commissioned by the Indian Armed Forces. In compliance with a relevant one-billion dollar contract, Delhi will be supplied with 124 vehicles by the end of 2002. Component items for another 186 tanks will be delivered to Indian production plants. Indian Defence Minister George Fernandes who has recently visited Nizhny Tagil, has stated that the Indian government is ready to purchase another lot of such tanks and to offer Russia to take part in the modernisation of 1,500 T-72 tanks, which India purchased in the Soviet Union.

Andrei Belyaninov, the Director of the Rosoboronexport state enterprise /the chief organiser of the Nizhny Tagil show and the main Russian arms dealer on the international market/ stated that Russia's revenues from arms supplies in the first half of 2002 had exceeded 2 bln. dollars. Russia is expected to get another 2 bln. dollars in the second half of this year.

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