Doors open at biennial arms fair
Officials inspected the different exhibitions at Greece’s biennial arms fair, which opened in Athens yesterday, with contractors from 34 countries showcasing land, sea and air defense systems and Russia negotiating a major sale of infantry combat vehicles to Greece. The Defendory International 2008 fair at the former airport in Hellenikon, scheduled to run through to Saturday, includes exhibitors from Britain, China, France, Germany, Israel, Italy, Pakistan, Russia, Spain, Sweden and the United States. Organizers said the fair is 20 percent larger than in 2006. France’s secretary of state for defense, Jean-Marie Bockel, is expected to attend the fair, reported Agence France-Presse, which cited diplomatic sources.