Russian arms exports to Venezuela may total as much as USD 5 billion, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said on Monday, according to Russian news agencies. Putin visited Venezuela last week and pledged to sell more weapons to the country, but he provided no specific figures. Russian news agencies quoted Prime Minister Putin as saying that the new arms deals may exceed USD 5 billion, reported AP. On Friday, Russia agreed to lend Venezuela up to USD 2.2 billion for new arms deals. ...

President Garcia told the press that he considers as “correct” the decision of the Army and the Ministry of Defense to purchase Chinese tanks, and stressed that such a decision "doesn't contradict our vocation against an arms race."He advanced that this acquisition is “almost a fact” and that the respective draft agreements with the Asian country have already been signed. Garcia Perez added that thanks to his Chinese counterpart Hu Jintao, "we got an...

Defense Minister Rafael Rey announced Thursday that South Korea donated eight used light attack aircrafts to Peru, which will be used for training air force pilots and conducting border surveillance and counter-narcotics operations. Rey told TV Peru the donation of the Cessna-built A-37 Dragonfly combat planes is valued at $66 million. South Korea also donated additional engines and spare parts that the Air Force will use to repair four other aircraft. “The donation of the eight planes...

Russia and Nicaragua will hold joint military exercises, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on the sidelines of talks with Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega during a working visit to Latin America, RIA-Novosti reported Monday. The planned exercises could anger the United States, which considers Latin America as part of its traditional sphere of influence. Meanwhile, Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin published an article Monday in Kommersant denying a report in the newspaper last week...

LONDON - As the United States remains otherwise engaged in the Middle East and Afghanistan, Russia has secured a long-term security role in Latin America, becoming its largest military supplier between 2008 and 2009, data from the International Institute for Strategic Studies showed. It happened while the Bush and Obama administrations' attention and energies were focused on anti-terrorist operations in the Middle East and elsewhere and not so much in Central or South America. Analysts said...

A Venezuelan military helicopter has violated Colombian airspace and spied on military facilities in the northwest of the country, the Colombian Foreign Ministry said. "The incident took place early on Wednesday. A Venezuelan Bell helicopter flew near an army base hosting a [Colombian] infantry brigade in the outskirts of the town of Arauca," the ministry said in statement. "These actions are unacceptable," the ministry said, adding that an official letter of complaint...

The armies of Nicaragua and Venezuela will conduct military exercises aimed at training their air and naval forces, reported on Thursday official sources in Managua. The military exercises will take place in Nicaragua from May 1 to June 30, with the presence of about 30 Venezuelan soldiers and an unspecified number of ships and planes of the Venezuelan Air Force, DPA reported. The participation of Venezuelan troops was authorized on Wednesday by the Nicaraguan parliament as required...

LIMA - Peru's Congress Friday approved the executive branch's 2010 fiscal budget proposal worth about 82 billion soles ($29.2 billion) by a 51-26 vote. That compares with a budget of some PEN72 billion originally presented by the executive branch for 2009. The 2010 budget contains an 80% increase for defense forces, part of which will go to battling the illegal drug trade. The unicameral legislature also passed separate bills approving, among other things, public sector debt financing for...

The Peruvian Navy expressed interest in the acquisition of Argentine manufactured missiles currently under development, basically a version of the sea air Aspide, according to a Monday release from the Argentine Defence ministry. “We have an interest in the possibility of acquiring naval missiles manufactured by the Argentine defence industry”, said the commander of the Peruvian Navy Admiral Rolando Navarrete Salomón currently visiting Argentina. During a meeting with...

Israel Aerospace Industries on Wednesday signed a $350 million contract to supply drones to Brazil police - marking the largest such deal between Israel and Brazil. The deal was signed during President Peres' official visit to Brazil, but negotiations began months ago. The deal will be implemented in several phases, the first of which will include the transfer of three unmanned planes along with accompanying equipment, including a base station, control and inspection systems. This part...