Russian arms makers make big showing at Arab defense fair
ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates — Russia's defense companies are sensing an opening to get back into the global arms market, with Moscow's state-owned firms afforded a prominent display of weaponry here at the IDEX and NAVDEX defense fairs.
The massive stand is in contrast to the footprint at recent shows, where Russian arms makers have kept a low profile or – in the case of European exhibitions – weren't admitted at all because of the invasion of Ukraine.
With over a dozen Russian exhibitors, many of whom pitched upgraded variants of their weapons, the 2025 IDEX setting was noticeably different from the 2023 edition, when Russian companies were not even listed on the show's official website – though they still had space in a separate pavilion outside the main hall.
This time around, Russian exhibitors were placed in one of the busiest halls of the show here, alongside major regional players such as Saudi Arabia's Military Industries and Qatar's Barzan Holdings.
Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 fundamentally altered its arms export industry, which saw a significant revenue plunge.
By the end of 2024, the Washington-based think tank Jamestown Foundation found that Russian weapons transfers had declined by 92% from 2021 levels, primarily due to the redistribution of national resources to support the Ukraine invasion and higher interest rates resulting from international sanctions.
Rosoboronexport, the state agency responsible for military trade, has maintained a business-as-usual composure, stating record level of orders for 2024.
Weeks before the exhibition here, Russian companies tried to create buzz around new products, reaching out to Western journalists and publishing press releases in English.
Among them is the Kalashnikov Group, which announced in mid-January that it would be unveiling a new Kub-2-E strike drone equipped with guided munitions as part of a drone-swarming concept and two new rifle designs.
The drones will be deployed by Russian troops from launchers mounted on armored vehicles, designed to target lightly armored military equipment, air defense systems, and helicopter basing sites, per a company press release.
According to the Institute of the Study of War, an American research organization for military affairs, Russia's objective in showcasing these technological adaptations here is 'to introduce innovations to optimize systems for use in Ukraine.'
Sam Bendett, advisor at the Washington-based Center for Naval Analyses think tank, said Russian defense companies are increasingly trying to capitalize on the claim of combat-proven equipment in the invasion of Ukraine.
Russian officials here also showcased an export variant of the T-90 Proryv main battle tank, which was placed at the centre stage of its pavilion and attracted a significant amount of attention from visitors on the opening day of the show here.
It was equipped with different types of protection against first-person-view drones, which have proven increasingly difficult to defend against across the battlefield.
Moscow has touted the capabilities of the platform in the Middle East since 2015, with little success. The tanks are reported to have suffered heavy combat losses in Ukraine, with open-source intelligence analysts having recorded at least 124 destroyed, according to the Dutch-based equipment tracking group Oryx.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Los Angeles Times
9 minutes ago
- Los Angeles Times
Russia launches another large-scale drone and missile attack on Ukraine, killing 3 and wounding 13
KYIV, Ukraine — Russia attacked two Ukrainian cities with waves of drones and missiles early Tuesday, killing three people and wounding at least 13 in what President Volodymyr Zelensky called 'one of the biggest' strikes in the 3-year-old war. The attack struck Kyiv and the southern port city of Odesa. In an online statement, Zelensky said that Moscow's forces fired over 315 drones, most of them Shaheds, and seven missiles overnight. 'Russian missile and Shahed strikes are louder than the efforts of the United States and others around the world to force Russia into peace,' Zelensky wrote, urging 'concrete action' from the U.S. and Europe in response to the attack. A maternity hospital and residential buildings in the southern port of Odesa were damaged in the attack, regional head Oleh Kiper said. Two people were killed and nine injured, according to the regional prosecutor's office. Another person was killed in Kyiv's Obolonskyi district, regional head Tymur Tkachenko wrote on Telegram. 'Russian strikes are once again hitting not military targets but the lives of ordinary people. This once again shows the true nature of what we are dealing with,' he said. Explosions and the buzzing of drones were heard around the city for hours. The fresh attacks came a day after Moscow launched almost 500 drones at Ukraine in the biggest overnight drone bombardment of the war. Ukrainian and Western officials have been anticipating Moscow's response to Kyiv's audacious June 1 drone attack on distant Russian air bases. Russia has been launching a record number of drones and missiles in recent days, despite both sides trading memoranda at direct peace talks in Istanbul on June 2 that set out conditions for a potential ceasefire. However, the inclusion of clauses that both sides see as nonstarters make any quick deal unlikely, and a ceasefire, long sought by Kyiv, remains elusive. The only tangible outcome of the talks has been the exchange of prisoners of war, with a swap that began Monday for soldiers aged between 18 and 25. Russia's Defense Ministry said Tuesday it had received a second group of exchanged soldiers as part of the deal. Amina Ivanchenko was reunited Monday with her husband, a POW for 18 months, in the release of an initial group of Ukrainian soldiers. She said was grateful to Ukrainian officials for supporting her. 'My struggle was much easier thanks to them. Our country will definitely return everyone. Glory to Ukraine! Thank you!' Anastasia Nahorna waited in the Chernyhiv region to see if her husband, who has been missing for eight months, was among those being released in the latest swap. 'This pain is more unbearable every day,' she said. 'I really want to hear some news, because since the moment of his disappearance, unfortunately, there has been no information. Is he alive? or maybe in captivity? Has someone seen him?' she asked. Anna Rodionova, the wife of another Ukrainian POW, also was waiting. 'I just want him to come back soon and for this to all be over,' she said. 'We are tired of waiting, we come every exchange and he is not there.' A similar exchange was announced for the bodies of fallen soldiers held by both sides, although no schedule has been released. Asked to comment on the exchange of dead, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said it was unclear when it could take place and how many bodies Ukraine would hand over. He again accused Kyiv of dragging its feet on the exchange. 'There is one unarguable fact, we have had trucks with bodies standing ready for it on the border for several days,' he told reporters. Plumes of smoke rose in Kyiv as air defense forces worked to shoot down drones and missiles Tuesday. Viktoriia Melnyk, 30, vented her anger at the Russians after her building in the Obolonskyi district was struck by a drone. 'I want them to leave our territory, to leave us alone, to leave our families alone,' she said. 'Small children are dying. This is not normal. It's not normal that (the world) is turning away. This is not normal for the 21st century.' Mariia Pachapynska, the 26-year-old manager at a T-shirt company in the Obolonskiy district that produces T-shirts, decried that her facility was struck. 'There were military facilities here,' she said, noting that 'everything and half of me, half of my soul, burned down.' Seven out of 10 districts were damaged in the attack, according to Maryna Kotsupii of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine, adding that 16-story and 25-story residential buildings were hit. Residents took shelter and slept in metro stations during the long attack, including Nina Nosivets, 32, and her 8-month-old son, Levko. 'I just try not to think about all this, silently curled up like a mouse, wait until it all passes, the attacks. Distract the child somehow because it's probably the hardest thing for him to bear,' she said. Krystyna Semak, 37, said she was scared by the explosions and ran to the metro at 2 a.m., carrying a rug. Fires broke out in at least four Kyiv districts after debris from downed drones fell onto residential buildings and warehouses, according to the Kyiv City Military Administration. 'I was lying in bed, as always hoping that these Shaheds would fly past me, and I heard that Shahed (that hit the house),' said Vasyl Pesenko, 25, standing in his damaged kitchen. 'I thought that it would fly away, but it flew closer and closer and everything blew away.' The attack sparked 19 fires across Ukraine, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko wrote on Telegram. 'Russia must answer for every crime it commits. Until there is justice, there will be no security. For Ukraine. And for the world,' he said. The Russian Defense Ministry said an attack early Tuesday targeted arms plants in Kyiv, as well as military headquarters, troop locations, air bases and arms depots across Ukraine. 'The goals of the strikes have been achieved, all the designated targets have been hit,' it said in a statement. The death toll rose Tuesday from previous Russian strikes. In Kharkiv, rescuers found a body in the rubble of a building that was hit Saturday, Mayor Ihor Terekhov wrote on Telegram. The discovery brought the number of dead there to five, with five others potentially under the debris, Terekhov said. In the northern city of Sumy, a 17-year-old boy died of his injuries Tuesday after a June 3 attack, acting Mayor Artem Kobzar wrote on Telegram, bringing the number killed to six. The Russian Defense Ministry reported downing 102 Ukrainian drones over Russian regions and Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula Moscow illegally annexed from Kyiv in 2014. The drones were downed both over regions on the border and deeper inside Russia, including central Moscow and Leningrad regions, according to the Defense Ministry. Flights were temporarily restricted at multiple Russian airports, including all four in Moscow and the Pulkovo airport in St. Petersburg, the country's second-largest city. Stepanenko and Kullab write for the Associated Press. AP Journalist Illia Novikov contributed to this report.
Yahoo
14 minutes ago
- Yahoo
EU's new Russia sanctions to target energy sector and banks
BRUSSELS (Reuters) -The European Commission has proposed an 18th package of sanctions against Russia for its invasion of Ukraine, aimed at Moscow's energy revenues, its banks and its military industry, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Tuesday. The new package proposes banning transactions with Russia's Nord Stream gas pipelines as well as banks that engage in sanctions circumvention. "Russia's goal is not peace, it is to impose the rule of might ... strength is the only language that Russia will understand," von der Leyen told a news conference. The Commission has also proposed lowering the Group of Seven nations (G7) price cap on Russian crude oil to $45 a barrel from $60 barrel in a bid to cut Russia's energy revenues. Von der Leyen said that the oil price cap will be discussed at a G7 meeting this week. "My assumption is that we do that together as the G7. We started that as G7, it was successful as a measure from the G7, and I want to continue this measure as G7," she said. The proposal also lists more vessels that make up Russia's shadow fleet and oil trading companies. "The next round of EU sanctions against Russia will target Russia's energy revenues including the shadow fleet, its military industry and its banking sector," EU chief diplomat Kaja Kallas said. EU countries will start debating the proposal this week. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
14 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Nordstrom Rack to Open New Location in Pompano Beach, FL
SEATTLE, June 10, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Seattle-based fashion retailer Nordstrom, Inc. announced plans to open a new Nordstrom Rack in Pompano Beach, FL in fall 2026. "We look forward to being a part of the Pompano Beach community and serving our customers with an amazing offering of great brands at great prices," said Gemma Lionello, President of Nordstrom Rack. "We're excited to grow our footprint in the Florida market and introduce new customers to the Nordstrom experience." Lionello added that in this location "customers will be able to take advantage of our convenient services such as online order pick up from both and and they can make returns easily." The 28,000 square foot store will be in Pompano Citi Centre, a popular shopping center that includes national tenants such as Burlington, Five Below, TJ Maxx, Ross Dress for Less, Chuck E. Cheese, and Amped Fitness. Pompano Citi Centre is owned and managed by Sterling Organization and is the largest critical mass of retail space in northeast Broward County and spanning almost 60 acres. Pompano Citi Centre is located at the intersection of Federal Highway and Copans Road in Pompano Beach, Florida. "We're thrilled to welcome Nordstrom Rack to Pompano Citi Centre," said Bob Dake, Principal at Sterling Organization. "Their presence adds tremendous value to our tenant mix and further strengthens our commitment to creating a dynamic, high-quality experience for the community." Nordstrom Rack is the off-price retail division of Nordstrom, Inc. and plays a critical role in the company's Closer to You strategy, which focuses on delivering customers a more convenient and interconnected experience across its stores and digital platforms. Nordstrom Rack offers customers up to 70 percent off on-trend apparel, accessories, beauty products, home decor and shoes from many of the top brands sold at Nordstrom stores as well as core services like online order pickup for and easy returns and alterations at select stores. Nordstrom Rack is the largest source of new customers to Nordstrom. This new location expands the company's physical footprint and economic impact in Florida. It currently operates six Nordstrom stores and 19 Nordstrom Rack stores in Florida, generating more than 2,700 jobs statewide. Nordstrom is committed to investing in the diverse communities where it operates. Over the past four years, Nordstrom, with its customers, has donated more than $2 million in support of its long-term partnership with Big Brothers Big Sisters of the United States. These proceeds support the recruitment, training and engagement of adult mentors and mentorship moments between Bigs and Littles, including preparing for an interview, learning to tie a tie and helping with homework. About Nordstrom At Nordstrom, Inc., we exist to help our customers feel good and look their best. Since starting as a shoe store in 1901, how to best serve customers has been at the center of every decision we make. This heritage of service is the foundation we're building on as we provide convenience and true connection for our customers. Our interconnected model enables us to serve customers when, where and how they want to shop – whether that's in-store at more than 350 Nordstrom, Nordstrom Local and Nordstrom Rack locations or digitally through our Nordstrom and Rack apps and websites. Through it all, we remain committed to leaving the world better than we found it. About Sterling OrganizationSterling Organization owns 77 properties across various funds in major markets throughout the United States, encompassing over 13 million square feet and exceeding $3 billion in value. Headquartered in West Palm Beach, FL, Sterling Organization operates with offices nationwide. MEDIA CONTACT: Manuela UscherNordstrom, Inc. NordstromPR@ View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE Nordstrom, Inc. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
