Malaysian estimates
From 14 to 17 this April, in the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur, practically in the center of the city, the international exhibition of weapons and military equipment DSA was held in the building of the International Trade Center Putra (named for the country's first prime minister. - “NVO”). -2014. Our country took part in it for the third time. 22 Russian organizations, including Rosoboronexport, Uralvagonzavod, Oboronprom and Russian Helicopters, NPK Engineering Mechanical Engineering Design Bureau of Kolomna, Moscow Region, High-Precision Complexes and Tula Instrument Design Bureau, occupied an area of 555 sq. . m in two pavilions - on the first and second floors of the center. In total, Russian participants presented more than 2014 exhibits at the DSA-500.
The total area of the entire exhibition was 41 thousand square meters. m. On it was formed 28 national pavilions. And the largest expositions except the organizing country, which was represented by 95 companies, were brought by the USA (83 firms), Great Britain (70), France (42), Germany (34), Turkey (34), South Africa (32), South Korea (30 ), Australia (28), Czech Republic (25), Singapore (24), Italy and China (23). Only one list of these states and companies indicates that DSA enjoys great prestige in the Asia-Pacific region, and the competition of defense firms from different countries of the world in this market is becoming more acute.
Malaysia, like Singapore, the booming Vietnam, Indonesia, the Philippines and a number of other states in the region are called "South Asian tigers" or "dragons." And those and other creatures need strong muscles, strong and sharp teeth and claws in order to protect their economic boom, to feel confident in meetings and negotiations with such strong and predatory partners. And because the acquisition, and best of all, co-production, modernization and repair of modern and effective weapons for them is the number one task.
What place does Russia occupy in this market? How can it interest potential buyers and clients? We asked this question on the eve of our departure for Kuala Lumpur, Director of Special Assignments of Rosoboronexport and the head of the Rosoboronexport delegation at the exhibition, Colonel-General Nikolai Dimidyuk.
BUYER INTERESTS - FIRST PLACE
The Asia-Pacific region, Nikolai Mikhailovich noted, traditionally accounts for the largest volume of deliveries of Russian weapons. And it is for this very promising market that the strongest competitive struggle has unfolded between various countries and companies developing and producing various weapons, military and special equipment. After all, the geopolitical ambitions of many regional players have grown substantially, and they must be supported by real strength. In addition, the number of threats from separatist and terrorist groups has increased, and the issue of combating piracy is acute. This is also noted by the organizers of the exhibition, who emphasize that the countries of the region more than ever need modern products and technologies for defense and security. And that is why sufficiently large financial resources are allocated for these purposes, for which, in fact, there is a struggle of the world's largest weapon manufacturers.
According to the general, the exhibition is visited by a large number of representatives of the military-political leadership and business circles of the countries of the region.
And contacts with them are the main highlight for us. True, Nikolai Dimidyuk did not guarantee the signing of any DSA contracts.
“As you understand, signing contracts at an exhibition is still more a beautiful gesture than an objective set of circumstances,” Nikolai Mikhailovich emphasized. - We do not plan to sign mega-contracts, but it is possible that we will hold consultations on industrial partnership with a Malaysian company. The main trend today is a transition from direct deliveries to close cooperation, offset programs. The conditions are dictated by the buyer interested in developing their own high-tech industry. Not all exporters are ready to go for full-fledged and equal cooperation. Russia is ready, and this is one of our strengths. Moreover, we can offer unique options. For example, as part of an offset agreement for a contract for the supply of Malaysian Su-30MKM fighter jets in 2007, we sent the first Malaysian cosmonaut to the International Space Station. Agree, not every arms exporter can do this. ”
In a conversation with the head of the Rosoboronexport delegation, we recalled that the first contract for military-technical cooperation between Russia and Malaysia was the signing of an agreement in 1993 for the supply of MiG-29 multifunctional fighters, which later underwent a deep modernization. Then, during the zero years, Malaysia concluded contracts for the supply of Metis-M1 anti-tank systems, small arms, Igla man-portable air defense systems and Su-30MMM multipurpose fighter jets. Do we have the prospect of new contracts with Kuala Lumpur? What kind of systems can we offer him and what weapons and military equipment does he need?
“The Malaysian Ministry of Defense plans to announce a tender for the supply of one or two squadrons of multi-role fighters. And we will act in it as one of the participants with the updated Su-30MKM fighter, ”Dimidyuk told us. He clarified that the final appearance of the aircraft will be formed after receiving a formal request and analysis of technical tender requirements. “We believe that we will have high chances in this tender, considering the successful operation of both the Su-30MKM fighter planes, delivered under the 2003 contract of the year, and the MiG-29H, which, by the way, flies the famous Malaysian aerobatic team Smokey Bandits, which the visiting Air Force card of the country, ”the head of the Rosoboronexport delegation stressed.
In addition, he said, the Russian side plans to return to discussing with Malaysia the possibility of deliveries of major tanks domestic production. Two years ago, at the DSA-2012 exhibition, Malaysians were interested in the characteristics and combat capabilities of the modernized T-90S tank. “In terms of the number of innovations, this is actually a new tank, the combat properties of which - firepower, security and mobility - are a whole step higher than the serial T-90S," the source explained to us. “Unfortunately, these contacts have not received further development.” Malaysia’s need for modern tanks remains. “We are confident that Russian armored vehicles fully meet the needs of the Malaysian military, so we still expect to return to discussing this issue with our partners,” the general added.
He recalled that even in 2000, T-90C under the tender had been tested in Malaysia, and in the most difficult conditions of the jungle and marshes. “And the T-90C passed them brilliantly, from the technical side there were no questions to our tank. But then a different sample was chosen as the winner, ”the interlocutor emphasized.
The Russian delegation is also planning to take part in Malaysian tenders for the supply of medium-range anti-aircraft missile systems (SAM) with the Buk-M2E system and for short-range complexes with the Pantsir-C1 anti-aircraft missile system. Dimidyuk noted that Rosoboronexport conducts presentations of these complexes, introduces Malaysian specialists to their production, demonstrates combat capabilities. “Since the topic of air defense is very relevant for Malaysia, we expect increased attention to these complexes. In addition, in the region as a whole, there is a high interest in Russian air defense weapons, so we represent the whole range of them in Kuala Lumpur, ”the head of the Rosoboronexport delegation informed.
In addition, the general said, the Russian delegation for high-ranking representatives of the Ministry of Defense of Malaysia specially planned a presentation of the Mi-171Sh military transport helicopter. “These helicopters can significantly increase the mobility of the Malaysian army, and they will be indispensable when conducting special operations,” said Dimidyuk. He noted that at this exhibition the Russian delegation also focused on the promotion of anti-tank missile systems, such as Cornet-E, modernized Cornet-EM and Metis-M1. And on the naval theme, the Malaysian military is primarily interested in everything related to the protection of the 200-mile economic zone. And here we offer patrol boats, for example, the Mirage, the Sobol, the Mongoose, various options for an integrated coastal zone monitoring system.
By the way, Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of the Russian Federation to Malaysia Lyudmila Vorobyova told one of the correspondents of ITAR-TASS about the prospects for the further development of military-technical cooperation between Russia and Malaysia. “Our cooperation is time tested. We had major contracts for the supply of military products to this country, which have now been fulfilled. Now we are looking at the prospect and we believe that this cooperation will continue in the future, ”she said. Regarding the expected Malaysian fighter tender, in which Russia is ready to take part with the updated Su-30MKM fighter, the ambassador said that this tender has not yet been announced due to certain budgetary difficulties and is unlikely to be announced before the end of this year. Confirmation of this information was also obtained on the sidelines of DSA-2014: according to available data, the Commander of the Armed Forces of Malaysia, General Tan Sri Dato Sri Zulkifeli Mohd Zin - he visited the Russian stand - said that the tender for the supply of new fighters to Kuala Lumpur will not be announced . Will modernize the existing aviation fleet.
It should be emphasized that the Russian ambassador is the most promising area of cooperation with Malaysia in the field of aviation technicians considers helicopter subjects. “Russian helicopters have worked well not only in Malaysia, but also in the region of Southeast Asia, so I believe that in the field of helicopter technology we have prospects for further cooperation. There is interest in helicopters, especially since rotorcraft are much cheaper than military aircraft, ”said Lyudmila Vorobyeva. She also said that the Malaysian side has not yet decided on the fate of the fleet of MiG-29 fighters delivered to this country in the 90s. “So far, we do not know what steps the Malaysian side will take in this direction,” she said.
BIG PLANS OF UVZ
Army General Alexei Maslov, the special representative of the Uralvagonzavod corporation for military-technical cooperation, told us about the prospect of supplying the Russian tanks to the Malaysian market. At the same time, he drew our attention to the Terminator combat support vehicle (BMPT), which is of great interest from foreign experts. Now the management of Uralvagonzavod is creating a joint venture with Kazakhstan for the production of these machines. It will be completed by the end of this year. Moreover, the chassis for BMPT will be made by Astana, and the combat module with all the necessary stuffing will be UVZ. “We expect that the work on the establishment of the enterprise will be completed in the near future. We have prepared a complete package of documents and handed them over to the government level, ”said the general.
Agreement on the establishment of a joint venture for the production of "Terminators" on an equal footing Russian and Kazakh companies signed in September 2013 at the RussiaArmsEhro exhibition in Nizhny Tagil. According to Maslov, the Terminator has very big prospects on the world arms market. In the Asia-Pacific region, as in Africa, in Egypt, there are a lot of T-55 and T-62 tanks, which the Soviet Union once supplied here. Replacing the old tower with a new multipurpose combat module BMPT in them does not constitute a large technical complexity. But on the other hand, this gives the armored vehicle new shock effective qualities, which, on the one hand, saves serious funds for the renewal of the combat fleet, on the other hand, it makes it possible to sharply increase the strike force of our own army. And this opportunity is not neglected.
The UVZ team brought a valid Terminator model to the DSA exhibition. She traveled around the Uralvagonzavod exhibition area, along the corridors between the stands, easily overcame the thresholds, turned around, fired from all trunks, which attracted the enormous attention of visitors - military and civilian specialists. Nobody had such a “toy”. And it is clear that BMPT has become a kind of “nail” of the national exposition.
TULA, KOLOMNA, NOVOSIBIRSK, MOSCOW, FURTHER - EVERYWHERE
But not only and not so much the “Terminator” distinguished the Russian delegation. For example, the Tula Arms Plant (TOZ) brought to Kuala Lumpur the famous high-precision anti-tank guided missile (ATGM) 9М113М “Competition” with a tandem warhead to destroy armored vehicles with mounted dynamic protection, as well as fortified firing points and low-flying helicopters. The plant's general director, Ilya Kurilov, said that at the DSA, the plant is represented by its “top-end” samples of military products, including a number of small arms. One of such samples is the 9-mm small CP-3 submachine gun, which has the size of a submachine gun, but in terms of effective firing it greatly exceeds it and hits manpower and unarmored equipment at a distance of up to 200 m. There are special on the TOZ and 9-mm stand AU automatic rifles and BCC sniper rifles with a target range 400 m for conducting silent and flameless firing, striking the enemy's manpower, protected by any body armor. There is also a self-loading pistol 7,62 mm caliber MSS, which has no foreign analogues, for silent and flameless shooting, the bullet of which pierces a steel helmet at a distance of up to 25 m.
According to Kurilov, the “Competition” ATGM is in great demand in the Asian region. At the end of 2012, the Tulas signed a major contract with Delhi to supply the Konkurs-M ATGM for Indian motorized rifle units. According to Western sources, the cost of the contract for the purchase of 10 thousand. The Konkurs-M anti-tank missile system was approximately 222 – 240 million. The Russian rocket is also manufactured under license from an Indian company, and manufactures some components and accessories for mass production of missiles. TOZ.
The DSA visitors were greatly interested in the products of Kolomna Mechanical Engineering Design Bureau. And this is despite the fact that the lead developer of a number of guided weapons complexes - Scientific Production Corporation “Machine Building Design Bureau” - took part in an arms exhibition in Malaysia for the first time in the last 10 years. The main chip of Kolomna’s residents here are Igla MANPADS of a wide variety of modifications, including all the launch modules currently available: the Djigit base unit with a target designation system and the Mowgli night sight, a set of equipment and the Strelets launch modules for firing MANPADS missiles from various carriers, self-propelled archery installation with a set of control equipment and Sagittarius launch modules, as well as simulators and training class for training anti-aircraft gunners.
“10 years ago our company had a contract with Malaysia for the supply of Igla MANPADS, which we successfully fulfilled,” a company representative, Georgi Vasilyev, told us. - In the Armed Forces of Malaysia, an anti-aircraft missile formation, equipped with "Needles", is formed. As time goes by, Malaysia needs to either extend the life of the weapon, or buy new ones, especially since the Igla MANPADS is a development of the 1980s. It was replaced by Igla-S, a new generation complex that has a number of significant advantages and has great prospects in the South-East Asia market. ”
But experts from Novosibirsk brought their optical and laser sights for small arms as well as compact laser range finders to Kuala Lumpur. Sergey Dresvyannikov, the head of the external relations department of the Novosibirsk enterprise, informed one of the authors of these lines that their products are in great demand in the weapon markets of Southeast Asia, and they are counting on new orders, as well as on joint production of individual nodes of their systems at local enterprises . "Malaysia," he said, "is among the ten most industrially developed countries in the Asia-Pacific region, its microelectronics is especially highly valued, and we expect to take a much larger share of the local market with its participation." Moreover, similar products were brought to Kuala Lumpur and our partners from Belarus. In particular, Aleksey Shkadarevich, director of the Belarusian holding specializing in the development and production of various optical-electronic systems, told us that their company was actively involved in the implementation of the Russian state defense order, and in cooperation with Basalt and the Tula Instrument Design Bureau named after Shipunov supplies products to Bangladesh, Indonesia and the Philippines.
It is impossible not to say about the Russian coastal defense complexes presented at the exhibition, including the Club-M and Club-S missile complexes. "NVO" has repeatedly told about this unique weapon, which in a number of parameters exceeds the best foreign analogues, and the "Club-M" complex has no analogues at all. Combat means and all control systems of the latter can be easily placed in cargo containers, transported by rail, road or sea transport, and also placed on any unequipped coast and hit any targets at a distance of 300 km. It is not surprising that these complexes were of special interest to specialists at the exhibition. During the DSA’s work, more than a dozen delegations headed by high-ranking representatives of the military-political leadership of various countries visited the stand of the company representing these complexes. Among them, the brother of the King of Malaysia is the Sultan of Kedah Province, the Commander-in-Chief and Deputy Commander of the Malaysian Navy, the Commander-in-Chief of the Air Force of one of the richest countries in the Brunei region, who invited developers to the presentation of the Club to his state. Representatives of the region’s shipbuilding companies also came to the booth. Everyone was interested in the possibility of integrating Russian complexes with the control systems of various fleets and armies.
At the same time, representatives of Rosoboronexport were in attendance at all negotiations with high-ranking military officers conducted by the developers, and the head of the delegation Nikolay Dimidyuk told us that we offer our partners in the Asia-Pacific region not just individual missiles and complexes, but a whole coastal defense system , which includes various systems of reconnaissance, coastal radar monitoring, detection and identification of targets, weapon pointing and destruction at them. Only in this way can one or another country be protected from separatists, terrorists and sea pirates, which, unfortunately, are enough here in the Strait of Malacca.
ROGOZINSKAYA SCREW
And one more exhibit of the Malaysian exhibition can not be told - about the sniper rifle ORSIS T-5000, which is popularly called the “Rogozin rifle”. Apparently, because the deputy prime minister of the Russian government was directly involved in its creation and promotion. It is unlikely that this unofficial name was heard by Malaysian military and specialists, but the stand of the manufacturer and the rifle itself always had a lot of people. Everyone wanted to hold it in their hands, to aim, to distort the bolt, to pull the trigger. Women also did not lag behind men in uniform and without them. By the way, there are a lot of them in the local army and police.
T-5000 was brought to DSA by a young team of guys who graduated from Russian universities a few years ago. The head of the company's development department, Alexander Chikin, and his colleague Simon Amirov told us that high-ranking representatives of the defense ministries of four states - Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Pakistan were interested in their weapons. They offered to test the ORSIS T-5000 in their territories in order to make sure that the rifle works reliably in climatic conditions different from Russian ones. However, at first the company plans to test rifles on the territory of Russia with the participation of Indonesians, Malaysians, Pakistanis and Filipinos, the guys say, and only after that the developers are ready to test the guests at their partners.
Reflecting on the prospects of a new rifle, Alexander Chikin said that interest in their products was higher than expected in the company. “Despite the abundance of small arms of famous German, American and Belgian firms, the T-5000 rifle is in great demand here. Perhaps this is due to the fact that we specialize in sniper weapons, ”he suggested.
By the way, the representatives of Asian countries were not the first who liked sniper rifles under the brand name ORSIS. In October, 2013, the American actor Stephen Seagal, was impressed by her abilities. He even offered the company management to organize a joint project - ORSIS by Steven Seagal. However, not only an actor from the United States helps the Russian rifle to gain popularity. Russian President Vladimir Putin also contributed to the brand promotion. In October, 2012 of the year he presented a rifle of this brand to his Tajik counterpart Emomali Rahmon. And last year, Ukrainian athletes armed with T-5000, took second place in the competition for sniper shooting in the UK, passing only the hosts ahead.
A few words about the Ukrainian factor. It can be said that he did not affect the popularity of the Russian exposition, although neither the king nor the prime minister of Malaysia looked at our pavilion. Maybe there was no time. Maybe some other reasons have affected. But, according to the head of the Rosoboronexport delegation Nikolay Dimidyuk, “the exhibition was a success. We worked not only in Malaysia, but also in the entire Asia-Pacific region. We were visited by over 30 delegations from more than 10 countries. ” The colonel-general said that on the eve of the closure of the exposition, in particular, he had a meeting with the Secretary General of the Ministry of Defense of Malaysia, Ismail bin Haji Ahmad. “He showed increased interest in the Buk-М2E medium-range anti-aircraft missile systems, the Pantsir-С1 short-range anti-aircraft missile systems and the modernization of the aircraft fleet”.
The company’s DSA-2014 booth was also visited by the defense ministers of Nepal, Sri Lanka and Malaysia, high-ranking military officials from Bangladesh, Indonesia, Cambodia, Laos and other countries. “They focused on the protection of the coastal zone and airspace,” explained Dimidyuk. “And we are ready to render such assistance to them.” He noted that the Minister of Defense of Sri Lanka, for example, was interested in combat-training aircraft Yak-130. “We gave him a model of this aircraft. We agreed that in one of the countries - until I call her - in May we will hold a technical presentation of the Yak-130 and offer a visit with the aim of “show and fly,” the source said.
According to Nikolay Dimidyuk, the delegation of Rosoboronexport on DSA-2014 satisfied the interests of the MTC partners in full. “We conducted high-level presentations of both helicopters and air defense systems for many countries in the region,” he concluded.
We witnessed these talks and presentations. And we can firmly say that no political debacle with the United States and NATO about the Ukrainian events "on the Western Front" can affect our military-technical cooperation with the countries of the Asia-Pacific region.
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