November 7, 2007 Wednesday HELLO TO ARMS Mikhail Barabanov, science editor, "Arms Export" magazine No. 106 HIGHLIGHT: SOME FACTS AND FIGURES ABOUT THE ARMS TRADE IN THE CAUCASUS; Arms delivery statistics indicate that there's a militant mood in the former Soviet republics of the Trans-Caucasus - especially in Georgia - and Ukraine is being very zealous in assisting its "revolutionary" brothers. This is confirmed by information submitted to the United Nations. Arms delivery statistics indicate that there's a militant mood in the former Soviet republics of the Trans-Caucasus - especially in Georgia - and Ukraine is being very zealous in assisting its "revolutionary" brothers. Over the past few months, United Nations member states have sent the UN Conventional Arms Registry their official reports on arms exports and imports for 2006. The peculiarities of the arms trade inevitably leave their imprint on the format and completeness of the submitted data, raising serious doubts about the veracity of many reports. To all appearances, almost all states refrain from mentioning certain deliveries that may be "inconvenient" for one reason or another; information about missile weaponry shipments is often incomplete as well. Nevertheless, the annual reports submitted to the UN Registry are a valuable source of information: primarily for identifying minor arms shipments, deliveries of second-hand military hardware, and arms deliveries to developing nations and conflict zones. Information about all these categories rarely appears in the print media. Under the circumstances, the reports submitted by Russia, other former Soviet republics, and East European states are particularly interesting. The level of arms trade transparency in all these countries leaves much to be desired - even though Russia is the world's second- or third-largest arms exporter, and the former socialist camp is still sending large quantities of Soviet-made military hardware into the global marketplace. In its report to the UN Registry, Ukraine confirms its reputation as the world's leading supplier of second-hand weaponry from the arsenals of the former Soviet Union. In 2006, for example Ukraine sold T-72 and T-55 tanks, armored vehicles, artillery systems, and MiG-29 jets. Its clients included Azerbaijan, the Congo, Iraq, Yemen, Sri Lanka, Uganda, Vietnam... and even the United States. Ukraine managed to sell the Americans a batch of Soviet-made portable surface-to-air missile systems: fourteen 9P58M launchers and 33 9M36-1 missiles for Strela-3 9K34 systems, 29 9P519 launchers and 71 9M313 missiles for Igla-1 9K310 systems, 49 9P516 launchers and 99 9M39 missiles for Igla 9K38 systems. Apparently, these weapons will be used in the research and development process as the United States works to develop weapons to counter portable surface-to-air missile systems. Ukraine's arms exports are based on hardware inherited from the USSR. The only hardware produced by Ukraine's own defense sector is the BTR-3U armored personnel carrier (a modified clone of the BTR-80, assembled in Kharkiv), along with R-27 missiles produced by the Artem plant in Kiev. Ukraine continues to play a destabilizing role in the Caucasus region, supplying arms to Georgia and Azerbaijan. Ukraine is the leading supplier of arms and military hardware to both these countries. Most noteworthy: in 2006, Ukraine shipped the first five MiG-29 fighter jets to Azerbaijan - enhancing the combat capacities of the Azeri Air Force substantially, and signalling a new round of the arms race in the Caucasus. Ukraine continued to supply T-72 tanks and 120-mm mortars to Azerbaijan. Ukraine's report to the Registry fails to mention its delivery of six L-29 training planes to Georgia in 2006 (although their physical transfer may have been delayed until early 2007); it also fails to mention supplying Georgia with Osa-AKM air defense systems and artillery weapons, although these are mentioned in Georgia's list of imports. Georgia's report to the UN Registry for 2006 is the most detailed report submitted by any post-Soviet country; it includes information on Georgia's acquisition of anti-tank rockets and non-guided aviation rockets, as well as artillery weapons. Georgia remained a net importer of armaments in 2006, continuing its intensive purchases of arms and military hardware. According to the report, Georgia's main source of hardware in 2006 was the Czech Republic: 35 basic T-72 tanks (in addition to 35 tanks from the Czech Republic in 2005), 12 Dana 152-mm self-propelled howitzers (in addition to 12 howitzers purchased since 2003), and 30 D-30 122-mm towed howitzers (in addition to 12 acquired in 2001). Bosnia and Herzegovina sold Georgia 90 Yugoslavian-made mortars (15 120-mm mortars, 25 82-mm mortars, and 50 60-mm mortars). Ukraine sold Georgia one "system" (apparently a battery - four launchers) and 48 9M33M3 missiles for the Osa-AKM 9K33M3 air defense system, 64 30-mm AGS-17 anti-personnel grenade-launchers, 10,000 AKM automatic rifles, 11,700 AK-74 automatic rifles, and 53 PK and PKM machine guns. Kazakhstan sold Georgia 758 Shturm-V 9M114 anti-tank rocket launchers and 5,552 S-5KPB 57-mm non-guided aviation rockets (for helicopters). Bulgaria sold Georgia 450 Fagot 9M111 and Konkurs 9M113 ground-based anti-tank rocket launchers. Azerbaijan's report contains import information consistent with the official export information of countries that sold arms to Azerbaijan in 2006. Ukraine supplied 17 T-72 tanks, three BTR-3U armored personnel carriers, 13 PM-38 120-mm towed mortars, and five MiG-29 jets. Belarus supplied 41 T-72 tanks to Azerbaijan. Source: Profil, No. 40, October 29, 2007, pp. 30-32