Various Chinese new weapons make debut at Eurosatory 2014

The Eurosatory 2014, a biennial Land and Air-land Defense and Security Exhibition, was held in the suburb of Paris, France, from June 16 to 20, 2014. A total of 20 Chinese military industry enterprises participated in the exhibition, setting a new record in number of participating enterprises since Chinese enterprises began to attend the exhibition.

Chinese military industry enterprises are already capable of providing their competitive products to the world market, the Russian weekly magazine Argument and Fact reported recently.

Number of Chinese enterprises increased from 6 to 20

The exhibits for the Eurosatory range from handcuffs to tanks as well as various types of logistic and auxiliary equipment in addition to sophisticated weapons. And the private enterprises from China have shown their increasing interest in the exhibition.

At the Eurosatory 2010 when Chinese enterprises debuted in the exhibition, there were only three private enterprises. At the Eurosatory 2012, out of the 18 participating enterprises from China, there were 17 private ones. And at the Eurosatory 2014, there is only one state-owned enterprise among 20 participating enterprises from China.

Various new-types of weapons make debut at Eurosatory 2014

In the aspect of sophisticated weapons, the military industry products showcased by the Chinese enterprises are constantly upgraded. Take the China North Industries Group Corporation (NORINCO), which has successively participated in the Eurosatory for three times, for example, the equipment showcased by the NORINCO in recent years can best represent the progress made by the Chinese military products.

When the Chinese enterprises participated in the Eurosatory for the first time in 2010, the NORINCO brought its AR2 multiple-barrel rocket launcher, 105-mm wheeled assault gun, type VN-1 8x8 wheeled infantry combat vehicle, CS/SA1 vehicle-borne 35-mm anti-aircraft gun system, "Yitian" short-range air-defense missile system, air-defense command and control system, type VN-9 infantry combat vehicle and type PLZ45 155-mm self-propelled howitzer.

At the Eurosatory 2012, the NORINCO showcased its weaponry including "Tianlong" medium-range air-defense system, MBT-3000 main battle tank, AR3 multiple-barrel rocket launcher, type WMA-029 120-mm self-propelled mortar howitzer, 105-mm wheeled assault gun, CS/SM-1 81-mm self-propelled mortar and SR-5 multiple-barrel rocket launcher system.

At the Eurosatory 2014, the NORINCO focused on exhibiting a series of latest products including new-type main battle tank, armored vehicle, air-defense missile with a firing range of 50 kilometers, multiple-barrel rocket launcher, anti-terror and antiriot sniper rifle and light weapons.

China ranks 4th place in world's weaponry export volume

In recent years, Chinese enterprises positively participated in international defense exhibitions, showing the progress and self-confidence of the Chinese military industry to the world.

The Kanwa Defense Review of Canada pointed out in an article titled "Witnessing rise of China through international military equipment exhibitions" that the exhibits from Chinese enterprises are not only upgraded year by year, but their technical levels are also greatly improved, especially for the equipment such as long-range rocket launcher, guided rocket launcher, guided bomb and short-range ballistic missile, gradually forming their own features. In addition, their technical levels are among the top ranking products in the world, and some products are even in the apparent leading positions.

Therefore, the Chinese military trading delegations were always busy with answering the inquiries about the exhibits, distributing the technical specifications and carrying out trading negotiations with representatives from foreign militaries during the exhibitions.

The Argument and Fact said that according to a report of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) in Sweden, China's weaponry export value already ranked the fourth place in the world. A total of 35 countries are importing equipment from China, among which Pakistan, Bangladesh and Myanmar are the top three. Although the countries importing China-made weaponry are mostly those with medium and low incomes, the Chinese military enterprises are capable of providing competitive products to the world.