China is actively operating in the African market because other leading arms exporters, including Russia, tend to neglect the region. But judging by the countries involved in Africa Aerospace and Defense-2008, this is not exactly so.

Beijing also takes advantage of the fact that Africa cannot afford to buy expensive, high-tech equipment offered by Paris, Berlin, Brussels, Washington and Moscow.

Chinese-made copies of Soviet-era weapons are quite popular in Angola, Namibia, Tanzania, Congo, Chad and other African states because Beijing can afford to dump them on the local market and lend money to prospective customers.

However, Moscow stopped offering such loans several years ago because the former pro-socialist countries have failed to repay similar Soviet-era loans and because the Russian government was forced to write them off, all the more so as it could not get anything in exchange for the combat equipment.

But Angola is ready to allow Moscow to develop local diamond, polymetallic ore and other mineral deposits. The Angolan government and other African governments would like to set up joint ventures with Russian capital.

However, Russian businessmen are reluctant to operate in Africa, citing excessive risks, such as political instability and interethnic disagreements at every state-administration level. Moscow could lose its regional position because European and Asian investors do not fear such risks.

Russian weapon makers have drawn the right conclusions from their old-time mistakes. In 2002 the mixed Russian-South African commission for military-technical cooperation was established. In late November 2005 representatives of national defense industries held a joint seminar. In 2006 both countries signed an intergovernmental agreement on mutual copyright protection during their military-technical cooperation.

Russia and South Africa are moving to implement several attractive projects in this realm. For instance, unmanned aerial vehicles earmarked for third countries would be equipped with small Russian engines.

There are plans to establish a regional center that would service and repair Russian aircraft and to develop small-scale radar for the South African armed forces, to cooperate on third countries' markets and to train South African officers at Russian military academies, to hold a joint tender for a new South African main battle tank and to cooperate in the sphere of space exploration.

Russian specialists are also ready to facilitate peacekeeping operations in African states.

Consequently, Moscow had every reason to display its weapons systems in South Africa because it should not relinquish control of this attractive market segment.

(Nikita Petrov is a Russian military correspondent. This article is reprinted by permission of RIA Novosti. The opinions expressed in this article are the author's and do not necessarily represent those of RIA Novosti.)

(United Press International's "Outside View" commentaries are written by outside contributors who specialize in a variety of important issues. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of United Press International. In the interests of creating an open forum, original submissions are invited.)