KUALA LUMPUR. April 11 (Interfax-AVN) - The DSA 2002 international exhibition of armaments and military hardware ended in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday.
The DSA 2002 "will doubtlessly give an impetus to our work in the region," Viktor Komardin, deputy director general of the Rosoboronexport state-owned arms trader and head of the Russian delegation to the show, told Interfax-Military News Agency.
"As Malaysia is overcoming consequences of the currency and financial crisis that broke out in the country in late 1990s, we and other countries have grounds to believe that the interests in procurement of defense systems, including from Russia, will grow here," Komardin said.
He stressed that participation in arms shows such as the DSA was of great importance to Russian arms traders for they can enhance their niche on the arms markets of Malaysia and other Southeastern Asian nations.
"The Malaysian, Singaporean, Indian and South Korean shows are the four framework exhibitions that allow us to maintain our visual presence in the region throughout the year," Komardin said. In between the shows work on contracts and various projects is underway, he noted.
The contract for the supplies of Russian Igla portable surface-to-air missile systems to Malaysia was signed during the show. It was finalized beforehand and only "waiting for its time to come," the Russian official stressed.
The DSA involved 16 Russian defense industry enterprises that exhibited about 150 articles of armaments and military hardware under the auspices of the Rosoboronexport state-owned arms trader. A total of about 500 companies from 40 nations took part in the show.