Sources of Equipment and Support
Algeria's primary military supplier has been the former Soviet Union, which has sold various types of sophisticated equipment under military trade agreements, and the People's Republic of China. Since independence in the 1960s, no foreign bases are known to have been allowed in Algeria, although in the 1970s and 1980s, particularly, large numbers of Soviet military advisers were stationed in the country. Since 2001, security cooperation with the United States has increased, and US forces have taken part in training missions in the country's Saharan south.
In 2006, multi-billion dollar purchases of Russian military equipment were made in order to upgrade the country's conventional arsenal. This included a deal by the Algerian Air Force to purchase 28 Su-30MKA and 36 MiG-29SMT for up to $3.5 billion. However, those MiG-29s were returned to Russia in February 2008 because of poor quality of their airframe, after technical evaluations in Algeria. In May 2008 the two governments agreed a new deal to replace those 36 MiG-29SMT by a new batch of 16 Su-30MKA which meet all requirements of Algerian Air Force, but the issue does not appear to be completely resolved in 2009.
As of October 2009 it was reported that Algeria cancels weapons deal over Israeli parts.
Algeria also has a small domestic military industry of its own. The Army produces assault rifles AK-47 ( 7.62mm ) and AK-74 ( 5.45mm ) licensed by Russia and China as well as rocket-type RPG in the Construction Company Mechanical Khenchela. The logistics base station produces various types of AICV ( Armoured Infantry Fighting Vehicle ) for the recognition and transport of troops and light armored vehicles for the maintenance of order. The air force produces two types of light aircraft for the basic training and produces its own drone reconnaissance since December 2010. The Russian company Rosoboronexport, has expressed a request for financial assistance to several countries including Algeria, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the UAE to participate in the project for the production of the T-50 (PAK-FA) 5th generation fighter aircraft.
Read more about this topic: Military Of Algeria
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