Russia builds up arms export.

MOSCOW, January 30 (By Itar-Tass World Service writer Lyudmila
Alexandrova) -- Despite the world crisis Russia in 2009 exported 7.4
billion dollars worth of arms, 10 percent more than in the previous year.
Expert attribute this to the multi-polarity of the modern world. Latin
America has shrugged off many of Washington's controls, and other
countries wish to diversify supplies, too.

The main hopes of Russia's defense-industrial complex are pinned on
India, which has been arming itself quickly and eagerly, and on markets in
the Persian Gulf.
As he looked back on last year's operation of the country's sole state
mediator in charge of the export of all military and dual purpose
products, technologies and services, Rosoboronexport, last Thursday, the
agency's director Anatoly Isaikin said the supplies of arms and
technologies for air forces accounted for nearly half of Russia's military
export.
The contracts signed reached 15 billion dollars (in contrast to 9.4
billion in 2008), and the overall portfolio of contracts for years to come
exceeded 34 billion dollars.
Russian aviation technologies are in the greatest demand (50 percent
of all supplies), armaments for ground troops are second (19 percent), and
then there follow naval supplies (13.7 percent) and air defense equipment
(13.3 percent).
The main customers of Russian armaments are India, Algeria, China,
Venezuela, Malaysia and Syria. On the list of Rosoboronexport clients
there are over 70 countries, and this year the company hopes to perform at
least as good as it did last year.
Isaikin said negotiations were in progress on supplies of different
armaments to NATO countries. He did not mention any specific countries,
though, nor did he disclose the dates of supplies. He said Russian
military products had been dispatched to NATO countries more than once,
such as Greece and Turkey, and also countries that have not joined the
alliance yet, but were very close to doing so.
India remains number one strategic partner. Moscow and Delhi have been
working jointly on the creation of fifth generation jets, and also in the
sphere of transport aviation and a multi-functional warplane. Russia is
participating in India's bidding contest for providing warplanes and the
chances of winning look good, Isaikin said.
"Today the contest is in the middle of the road. There have been no
dropouts from the general list. Only the best bidder will win, of course,
and we have no doubts it will be our MiG-35, because this aircraft
possesses all of the qualities India's Air Force needs," he said.
The overall value of the contract, according to Indian sources, is
over 10 billion dollars. Russia's rivals are France's Dassault Aviation,
with its Rafale jet, Lockheed-Martin, with the F-16 and Boeing with the
F/A-18. Sweden's Saab has proposed its latest product Gripen, and the
European consortium EADS, incorporating British, German, Spanish and
Italian firms, Eurofighter Typhoon. The MiG-35, designed for gaining
superiority in a dog fight and dealing effective strikes with smart
weapons at surface and air targets without entering the range of the enemy'
s air defenses does have good chances to win. This fighter belongs with
the 4++ generation.
Foreign customers have displayed great interest in Russia's newest air
defense systems S-400 Triumf, but, as Isaikin said, these systems would be
supplied exclusively to the Russian Armed Forces for several years to
come. Only when the needs the Russian army have been satisfied to the
full, it might be possible to consider S-400 sales to other countries, he
said.
The government-published daily Rossiiskaya Gazeta says that this
system is unparalleled in the world. It is capable of tracking up to 300
target trajectories, homing 72 missiles and ensuring the elimination of
air targets at ranges of up to 250 kilometers and of non-strategic
ballistic missiles, at ranges of up to 60 kilometers. Even Stealth
aircraft, small-size cruise and short-range missiles, as well as warheads
having a speed of up to 4.8 kilometers per second and flying at a distance
of 400 kilometers away will have no chances of escaping it.
Negotiations are in progress on exporting armored vehicles to a number
of countries. The T-90S - the most well-sold Russian main battle tank -
may soon be replaced by the T-95 and others, still in the design phase.
The tank support combat vehicle has good export opportunities, too. It is
unique in several respects. Its main advantages are enormous fire power
and excellent protection from anti-tank weapons.
As he reviewed the destinations where Russian armaments were being
exported or may be exported in the near future, Isaikin noted some most
important ones. Russia is in talks with Libya over the supplies of all
types of armaments and over repairs of military equipment. Negotiations
are in progress with Saudi Arabia.
The reasons why the export of Russian armaments has been growing
despite the crisis are largely political, analysts say. Access to the
markets of the Latin America, which demonstrated a distinct political
drift to the left over the past few years is a graphic example.
"Take Venezuela, which has always purchased weapons only from the
United States or Europe. Now it cannot do so for political reasons," the
RBC Daily quotes Alexander Khramchikhin, of the Institute of Military and
Political Analysis, as saying. "There are countries pegged to the Western
military-industrial complex, but who are eager to diversify supplies. For
instance, Indonesia, and Malaysia, which purchased our Su-30 fighters."
Russia, in contrast to the United States, does not link its arms sales
to political requirements, so the maintenance of equipment provided will
be always guaranteed, the daily quotes Igor Korotchenko, a member of the
public council under the Russian Defense Ministry as saying.
India is the main hope for Russia's defense-industrial complex, he
believes. Eager to take the position of a regional superpower, that
country not only purchases advanced equipment, but also seeks to
participate in the design work and then to obtain production licenses. New
Delhi sets very high parameters future products are expected to match, and
Russian manufacturers "have to excel at work" and raise their own
production capabilities.
In the yet-to-be accessed markets specialists see the best chances in
the traditionally pro-American monarchies of the Gulf. The Rosoboronexport
chief and First Deputy Prime Minister Viktor Zubkov earlier this month
visited Bahrain to offer King Hamad not only arms purchases but also
projects for maintenance centers.
Just recently the news arrived of supplies of the rocket launchers
Pantsyr to the United Arab Emirates. However, Saudi Arabia, says
Korotchenko, is the main hope in this region. He believes that an
impressive package of contracts for the supply of air defense weapons,
armored vehicles, Su-35 jets and so on may be concluded.
That would be a colossal breakthrough, says the analyst, but some
members of the royal family have already experienced strong pressures from
the West. The market is almost completely divided among the United States,
Britain and France.

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