Pakistan's first international defense show draws Arab interest

NEW DEHLI — Pakistani weapons are drawing Arab interest.

Pakistani's first international defense show has attracted delegations from such Arab countries as Egypt, Kuwait, Oman, the Palestinian Authority, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria and the United Arab Emirates. The exhibition in Karachi is displaying a range of missiles developed by Pakistan.

Oman, Qatar, Kuwait, Sudan, Saudi Arabia and the UAE are exhibiting at the show. In all, more than 200 Pakistani and 60 international manufacturers, including Turkey, are at the show.

Pakistan has used U.S. and Chinese technology to develop its defense industry. At the show, Pakistan is displaying the intermediate-range Ghouri and Shaheen missiles as well as the Hatf-1 and the Baktar Shikan missiles.

Other Pakistani systems include M113P armored personnel carriers, the advanced Grifo-7 radar system and the Zarar and Khalid tanks.

The three-man 46 ton Khalid tank has a maximum speed of 65 kilometers per hour and a cruising range of 400 kilometers. The tank, a joint project between Pakistan's Heavy Industries Taxila and China's NORINCO is said to possess "exceptional mobility, effective protection and excellent firepower supported by a hunter killer capability," according to official reports.

At the exhibition, Pakistani President Mohammad Rafiq Tarar said Pakistan has progressed from being a major arms importer to an indigenous weapons manufacturer seeking a larger export market.

"Nations are now seeking collaboration in the field of defence production as a means for achieving a level of mutual security and deterrence. Instead of arming for war they are arming for peace," Tarar said. "While our efforts towards being self-reliant in the defence field continue, we are conscious of the fact that neither the state-owned defence industries can alone meet the highly complex requirements of national defence, nor can Pakistan meet all its requirements from within."

Annual weapons sales -- including anti-tank rockets, mortars, ammunition, machineguns and rifles -- to the Middle East and Europe have doubled in the past two years, grossing $30.2 million in 1999.