OREANDA-NEWS. July 6, 2011. The Russian Federal State Unitary Enterprise Rosoboronexport will display more than 50 items of the Russian military hardware at the BRIDEX 2011 International Defence Exhibition and Conference to take place in Brunei’s capital city Bandar Seri Begawan (6-9 July, 2011). Noteworthy, it is the first time the company participates in the show.

The expo has been held there annually since 2007, and is evolving to become increasingly more popular with the years. Indeed, this year’s show will expectedly be attended by more than 300 companies from 30 nations.

Russian Federation and Brunei Darussalam established diplomatic relations on 1 October, 1991 and have been expanding them ever since. They engaged in a fruitful dialog in the area of defense cooperation in 2000s. For instance, in May 2005 Rosoboronexport experts, invited by the Brunei Ministry of Defence to Bandar Seri Begawan, made a comprehensive presentation of Russian arms and materiel. The same there was the first official visit to Russia of His Majesty The Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu'izzaddin Waddaulah, the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam, which laid a solid groundwork for a further dialogue between the two nations. During his second visit to Moscow in 2009 His Majesty the Sultan of Brunei Darussalam paid a visit to the Rosoboronexport headquarters.

The Russian-Brunei relations are progressing rapidly, and the fact that the Russian state arms exporter goes the show is one of the proofs of that. Although no particular agreements have been signed in the military-technical sphere so far, Brunei’s interest for the Russian military equipment is felt, more so now that the country has launched a long-term program of the Armed Forces modernization.

“What is essential for us is the fruitful dialogue that we have. We are looking forward to cooperation, and are finding areas where our interests intersect. I am sure that the visit to BRIDEX will yield good results. Because the weapons and materiel that we offer meet the requirements of the Armed Forces of Brunei Darussalam,” said deputy Director General of Rosoboronexport and the head of its delegation at the show Viktor Komardin.

In addition, BRIDEX is important for Rosoboronexport because it is a good bridgehead to further strengthen relations with other nations in the Asia-Pacific region.

“There is quite a capacious market here, and we actively develop links with such nations as Bangladesh, China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam. Our partners are aware that Rosoboronexport’s strategy aims to shape, strengthen, and develop long-term mutually beneficial relations,” Mr. Komardin added.

Rosoboronexport offers a wide range of defense and dual-use products to its partners in the Asia-Pacific regions, as well as after-sale services, repairs, upgrades, and licensed production of hi-tech combat materiel.

It will show a lineup of patrol boats, cutting-edge helicopters and air defense weapons, coastal area control systems and effective and reliable hardware for special operations forces.

The participants and guests of the show will be provided with detailed information about the following pieces of Russian weapons and materiel:

Land Forces and Special Operations Forces: BMPT tank support combat vehicle; Tigr armored vehicle; BTR-80A armored personnel carrier; BMP-3M infantry fighting vehicle; Kamaz armored vehicles; Vodnik high-mobility multi-purpose vehicle; AK105 and AN-94 assault rifles; RPO rocket launcher; PSM and PYa pistols; Kedr submachine gun; RPG-7V1, RPG-29 and RPG-29N rocket launchers; Kornet-E and Metis-M1 antitank guided missile systems, etc.

Navy: Mirazh, Sobol, Mangust and A106 patrol boats; MR-10, Mys-ME and Mys-M1E coastal radars for surface target detection; Komor-1 submarine detection system; Podsolnukh-E surface wave radar, etc.

Air Force: Ka-226T, Ka-32 and Mi-38 multirole helicopters; Mi-171SH military transport helicopter; Ka-52 attack helicopter; Ka-31 surveillance helicopter, Be-200 amphibian aircraft, Yak-130 combat trainer etc.

Air Defense: Tor-M2E surface-to-air missile system; Igla-S man portable air defense missile system and the Strelets air defence missile launch and support equipment set.

Also on the display will be small arms and helicopter training aids – some expected to prompt increased interest of regional specialists.

Tor-M2E SAM system. The latest-generation highly-automated four-channel short-range surface-to-air missile system underwent a series of trials and was certified in 2008. A battery of four combat vehicles can simultaneously engage up to 16 targets in all aspects at ranges from 1 to 12 km and at altitudes from 10 m to 10 km. It is ideal to repel massive attacks by FW and RW aircraft, cruise missiles, guided aerial rockets and bombs and other precision weapons in adverse air and countermeasure situations. The system may be mounted on both tracked and wheeled chassis at the request of the customer. Tor-M2E is easy to integrate into existing air defenses.

Mirazh and Mangust patrol boats, displacing 120 and 27.2 tons respectively. Both are in service with Russian uniformed agencies. With special devices, including Arneson surface drives with partially submerged propellers and Automatic Interceptor Ride Control System, the boats can attain the top speed of over 50 knots, while retaining brilliant agility and seaworthiness.

Mirazh weapons: Shturm missile system to defeat surface targets at ranges out to 5.5 km, AK-306 arty system, eight Igla MANPADs, 7.62 and 14.5 machineguns.

Mangust weapons: 14.5-mm pedestal mounted machinegun; other weapons optional at client’s request.

Coastal area control systems. Water area control systems and defense and security systems for military and industrial shore and offshore installations are offered with due account of regional peculiarities. The systems feature open architecture, which allows integrating various monitoring assets and weapons depending on the mission, and ensures a 1.5-2 rise of combat efficiency of the defender. The components available on the display include the Komor-1 submarine detection system, Mys and MR-10 shore-based surface target detection radars, and the Podsolnukh-E over-the-horizon surface wave radar, intended for round-the-clock and all-weather detection of surface and aerial targets, including stealth ones, at ranges out to 450 km.

Kedr submachine gun.  The 9-mm submachine gun is essentially a close-quarters weapon, which is used largely in various uniformed agencies of Russia. Kerd features a folding buttstock and a two-row box-type magazine. It is capable of firing in single shots or bursts both with the buttstock folded or extended. A concealed carry holster is optional at the request of the client. A silencer version is also available.

BMPT tank support combat vehicle. A unique combat vehicle armed with two 30-mm 2A42 automatic cannons with a coaxial 7.62 machinegun, two launchers of four Ataka-T supersonic guided missiles, and two 30-mm AG-17D automatic grenade launchers. Three operators in the vehicle can simultaneously detect and engage three targets in full 360 degrees. The targets are designated to the operators by a commander, who can use redundant controls to attack them. With its thick armor and high mobility, the BMPT is employed either in a joint task force with tanks to destroy concealed and most critical targets such as antitank weapon emplacements, or independently to support infantry with fires, provide security of marching columns and installations, and destroy terrorists.

Rosoboronexport is the sole Russian company entitled to export the whole range of military and dual-purpose products, technologies and services. The status of Rosoboronexport allows it to warrant state support for all of its export transactions.

Rosoboronexport is listed among leading exporters operating in the global arms market. Its share in foreign arms sales of Russia exceeds 80 percent. Russia maintains military-technical cooperation with more than 70 countries all over the world.

Rosoboronexport highly values its reputation of a reliable partner, and strictly abides by the letter and spirit of Russia’s international military and political commitments, including those in the arms control field.