Russia is set to deliver military Mi-35 multipurpose helicopters to Nigeria and three other African countries this year and next.
Other recipients of other Russian Helicopters, according to Tass news agency are Angola, Mali, and Sudan.
Russia will deliver the wares as Nigeria is carrying out the modernization program of its armed forces.
The disclosure was made by the deputy head of Russia’s Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation on Friday.
“In 2016-2017, we plan to continue exporting these helicopters to Angola, Mali, Sudan, Nigeria,” Tass quoted Rosoboronexport’s Yury Demchenko, head of a Russian delegation to the Africa Aerospace & Defense Expo, as saying.
“Our position in the African helicopter market is solid, so we are optimistic about the prospects of cultivating it further.”
In the 2014-2016 period, Russia exported helicopters to Angola, Sudan, Rwanda and Uganda.
Demchenko said many African countries prefer to purchase inexpensive equipment, particularly used equipment.
The Mi-8/17 and Mi-24/35 exported to Africa had all gone through “major renovation,” he said.
Business on the continent for Russian exporters is expected to grow, he said.
“By and large the share of Africa in the world export of weapons is relatively small.
“For instance, sub-Saharan Africa accounts for about two percent, but the statistics of Russian weapons sales by Rosoboronexport in Africa showed steady growth for several years.
“A similar situation can be observed in northern Africa, where a number of countries in recent years considerably built up purchases of Russian weapons to have entered the list of our main partners in the sphere of military-technical cooperation.”
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