Putin shows off his toys: Buyers at Russian arms convention are treated to display of missiles, trucks and tanks after he boasted his arsenal is ‘decades ahead of Western rivals’
- Kremlin’s annual arms expo has been attended this week by military delegations from 72 nations, Russia says
- Army has shown off its most advanced weaponry, which Putin claimed are ‘decades’ ahead of Western rivals’
- But key allies India and Egypt reportedly expressed concern at easy destruction of pricey weapons in Ukraine
- India, Egypt & China make up one-third of $15bn (£12.5bn) annual arms sales: Russia is 2nd biggest exporter
- Western sanctions have made Moscow’s weapons industry ever more crucial as national economy falters
- Meanwhile Putin sacked a leading Black Sea Fleet commander amid slew of humiliations in occupied Crimea
- And Russia hosted the commander of Palestine’s security forces to discuss military and intel cooperation
- Israel’s historically close relationship with Russia has been strained by nation’s condemnation of Ukraine war
The Russian army today showed off missiles, mortar, tanks, and trucks at its annual arms convention outside Moscow after Putin bragged that his soldiers’ equipment was ‘decades’ ahead of Western armouries.
Kremlin chiefs have reportedly faced pushback from key buyers India and Egypt, who with China make up one-third of Russia’s £12.5billion arms sales, as Putin’s weaponry and tactics repeatedly fall short in Ukraine.
T-72 battle tanks, BMP K-17 armoured trucks and Tulpan self-propelled heavy mortar shells were all on show this afternoon at the Army-2022 expo in Patriot Park, Alabino, a suburb south west of Moscow.
Putin attended the convention’s opening on Monday, where he promised to arm allies with ‘the most modern weapons’ and boasted that Russia’s arsenal is ‘many years, if not decades’ ahead of his Western rivals.
Chinese soldiers driving a Type 96B tank take part in the week-long arms convention’s Tank Biathlon outside Moscow today
A Russian II-76MD aircraft shows off its water deployment capabilities at Patriot Park as part of today’s fanfare
A T-72 battle tank, commonly deployed – and destroyed – in Ukraine takes part in today’s Tank Biathlon event at Army-2022
Russian officials yesterday met with the commander of Palestine’s security forces to discuss further military and intelligence cooperation.
Israel’s historically close relationship with Russia, which houses up to 500,000 of the world’s 15 million Jews, has strained as Jerusalem continues to condemn the war in Ukraine – and the Kremlin’s unfounded allegation that leaders in Kyiv are ‘Nazis’.
Deputy Defence Minister Alexander Fomin held talks with Major General Nidal Abu Dukhan of the Palestinian National Authority on the margins of a security conference held alongside Army-2022.
Russia has sought to maintain good relations with the Palestinians, supporting their drive for statehood while stopping short of steps it believes could threaten Moscow’s status as an intermediary between Palestine and Israel.
The turret of a T-72 driven by Belarussian soldiers is visible as the weapon or war makes it way through a puddle in Patriot Park
Russia showed off a display of weapons it claims were plundered from the battlefields of Ukraine. Pictured: a Tochka-U missile
Russia has been keen to offer support to countries it considers allies in Latin America, Africa and Asia since its invasion, including through selling advanced weapons and military technology.
In a separate statement on Wednesday, the defense ministry said it held talks with the West African nation of Mali on strengthening its defense capabilities.
al-Qaeda’s affiliate in Mali claimed on Monday it had killed four mercenaries from Russia’s private military firm Wagner Group in an ambush around Bandiagara, in the centre of the country.
The claim comes days after Ukraine destroyed Wagner’s HQ in the Donbas using an America-gifted high-tech HIMARS missile.
More weapons allegedly stolen from eastern Ukraine are shown off by the Russian army at the exhibition centre near Moscow
Military fans pose next to a Topol missile launcher yesterday during the International Army Games at Patriot Park
Another T-72 tank with Chinese insignia fires during the tank competition outside Moscow today
Russian models pose on top of an army tank in red high heels and white shirts at the exhibition outside Moscow yesterday
Putin is thought to have sacked a top commander of the Black Sea Fleet amid a series of humiliating failures in occupied Crimea, long thought to be a safe zone for Russian soldiers and supplies.
The removal of the previous commander Igor Osipov marks the most prominent sacking of a military official in the nearly six months since Russia launched its war on Ukraine.
State-run outlet RIA said the new chief, Viktor Sokolov, was introduced to members of the fleet’s military council in the port of Sevastopol.
Putin vowed at the opening of Army-2022 two days ago: ‘[We] are ready to offer our allies the most modern types of weapons, from small arms to armored vehicles and artillery to combat aviation and unmanned aerial vehicles.
T-72 B3 tank operated by a crew from Uzbekistan drives during the Tank Biathlon competition
Soldiers from China on a Type 96B (ZTZ-96B) battle tank compete in an individual race during the Tank Biathlon 2022
‘Almost all of them have been used more than once in real combat operations.
‘Many of them are years, if not decades, ahead of their foreign counterparts.
‘And in terms of tactical and technical characteristics they are significantly superior to them.’
The Kremlin leader claimed Russian soldiers in eastern Ukraine ‘are honorably fulfilling their duty’.
‘They are fighting for Russia’, he said, ‘[and] for a peaceful life in the Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics. Step by step, they liberate the Donbas.’
Children play on a Soviet T-34 tank, a symbol of Russian military power associated with the war against Nazi Germany
Putin lackey Dmitry Medvedev (centre) attends Army-2022 yesterday alongside trade minister Denis Manturov (right)
Western military analysts say the poor performance of Russian troops and weaponry could make its arms exports less attractive to potential buyers.
Allies such as India and Egypt have heavily relied on its technology in the past.
In July, Egypt bought 500 Russian T-90 tanks.
India has purchased more than 450 and Algeria has also bought T-90 tanks, making them the most advanced military vehicle found in Africa.
A visitor tries a seaman psychological and physical training simulator at Army-2022 in the suburbs of south west Moscow
Putin is pictured as he made a salesman’s speech on Monday to advertise Russian weaponry to more than 70 allies
India, China and Egypt accounted for nearly two-thirds of Russian arms sales from 2017 to 2021, Bloomberg reported.
Its sluggish development of competitive drones, easily destroyed T-90 tanks, and missing-in-action T-14 Armata have sent worrying signals to all three partners.
Competitors Japan, South Korea, Turkey or some European countries could pose a threat to Russia’s arms industry as non-aggressors in frosty US-China relations.
The weeks-long sales exhibition runs until August 27.
An officer from Uganda poses for a selfie photo in front the 2S25 Sprut-SD (‘Kraken SD’) self-propelled anti-tank gun
A woman poses for a photo in a Tigr 4×4 all-terrain infantry military vehicle at the International Military Technical Forum
Officers from Zimbabwe and Vietnam seen during the International Military Technical Forum
Vietnamese guests look at the mannequin in the military uniform during the opening ceremony of Army-2022 on Monday
Members of China’s team operate with their Type 96A tank during the Tank Biathlon competition yesterday
Visitors walk past a pavilion during the Army-2022 International Military-Technical Forum at the Russian Armed Forces’ Patriot Park in Kubink
Visitors look at the Sukhoi SU-57 jet fighter during the International Military Technical Forum
A visitor looks at Kalashnikov submachine guns during an exhibition at Army-2022 south west of Moscow two days ago
A delegate looks at the ‘Planshet-A’ mobile artillery fire control complex during the International Military Technical Forum
A Russian naval officer looks through the scope of a Kalashnikov rifle at a showroom of heavy weaponry
A visitor poses in front of a Russian Sukhoi Su-57 fifth-generation fighter aircraft
A Russian Sukhoi Su-57 fifth-generation fighter aircraft is exhibited during Army-2022
Russia’s fifth-generation Sukhoi Su-57 fighter planes cost around $40million each and are among the world’s most advanced
Exhibition models pose on top of a tank at Army-2022 yesterday
Smitten visitors look at a Russian army robot dog, which are touted as being able to carry rocket launchers
A view shows the installation with an AT4 anti-tank launcher during the exhibition of weaponry and equipment that, according to the Russian defence ministry, were captured during the military conflict in Ukraine
Kim Jong Un says Putin vowed to forge closer bond with North Korea
Vladimir Putin told North Korean leader Kim Jong Un the two countries will ‘expand the comprehensive and constructive bilateral relations with common efforts,’ Pyongyang’s state media reported today.
In a letter to Kim for the country’s liberation day, Putin said closer ties would be in both countries’ interests and help strengthen the security and stability of the Korean peninsula and the Northeastern Asian region.
Kim also sent a letter to Putin saying Russian-North Korean friendship had been forged in World War II with victory over Japan, which had occupied the Korean peninsula.
Lovebirds: Kim and Putin are pictured together at a summit in Vladivostok, April 2019
The ‘strategic and tactical cooperation, support and solidarity’ between the two countries has since reached a new level is their common efforts to frustrate threats and provocations from hostile military forces, Kim said in the letter.
State media KCNA did not identify the hostile forces, but it has typically used that term to refer to the United States and its allies.
The pair met at a summit in Russia in 2019.
North Korea in July recognized two Russian-backed breakaway ‘people’s republics’ in eastern Ukraine as independent states. Officials raised the prospect of North Korean workers being sent to meet labour shortages.
Ukraine immediately severed relations with Pyongyang.
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