Translated material
Criminal stuff
The season of security equipment exhibitions opens in Moscow
On October 30, the 11th international exhibition of state security equipment “Interpolitex-2007” begins work in pavilion No. 69 of the All-Russian Exhibition Center. It has been held since 1995, traditionally on the eve of Police Day , and every time a decree is issued by the Russian government on this occasion. The organizers of the exhibition are the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation (FS MTC), the Bizon group of companies.This year’s exhibition program consists directly of the Interpolitech exhibition of police and military equipment, as well as three specialized exhibitions: “Emergency Medicine”, “Customs” and “Border”. The latter is especially relevant since a decision was recently made to create the Federal Agency for the Development of the State Border of Russia. “Interpolitech-2007” is formed in 20 sections, including “Forensic technology”, “Means for supporting operational investigative activities”, “Inspection equipment”, “Systems and means of ensuring road safety”, “Special vehicles”, “New technologies and equipment." “These are precisely the areas in which intensive re-equipment of the Ministry of Internal Affairs units is underway,” said Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs, Chairman of the exhibition organizing committee, Police Lieutenant General Mikhail Sukhodolsky.
Forensic technology is represented by various modifications of stations and devices for operational checks, fingerprint records, a unique system of operational voice search, thermal imaging devices for round-the-clock search and surveillance. There are also new sections. These are unmanned aerial systems. One such system, for example, consists of two deployable reconnaissance aircraft and a ground control station with video monitors. The entire set weighs less than 30 kg and fits easily in a backpack. Visitors will see another new product - the domestic middle-class water jet machine "Storm", which is not inferior to its foreign counterparts. An open competition-test of license plate reading and recognition systems will be held as part of the exhibition. New products, as a rule, do not go unnoticed by specialists. Last year, the Ministry of Internal Affairs alone selected 17 products, tested them, some were rejected, but nine were put into service. So Interpolitech fully reflects the development trends of the special weapons and equipment market.
A special feature of Interpolitech is its demonstration program. On October 31, at the training ground of a separate special purpose division (ODON) of the internal troops, demonstration tactical and special training will be held by the Moscow riot police and the special purpose police detachment of the Moscow region, as experts say, to suppress group violations of public order, release hostages, and detain armed criminals. What will be demonstrated first of all is not the skills of the unit’s fighters, but their use of advanced technical developments.
A conference “Antiterror: an integrated approach” is also planned, one of the organizers of which is the CIS Anti-Terrorism Center. We will talk about the fight against terrorism in transport. For the first time, the 7th All-Russian Conference “Russian Security Industry: Prospects, Trends, Problems” will be held directly within the framework of the exhibition. It is organized by the League of Entrepreneurs and Heads of Security Enterprises and is supported by the State Duma Committee on Security and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
In total, five to seven such exhibitions are held annually in the world. It is traditionally believed that Interpolitech spun off from the international exhibition of security equipment Milipol. However, the “daughter” is in no way inferior to the Paris exhibition. In recent years, they have become competitors: those who go to Milipol rarely come to Moscow. Interpolitech, although small, has its own niche both in the system of Russian power exhibitions and international exhibitions held in Russia. According to the Deputy Director of the Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation, co-chairman of the Interpolitech organizing committee Vladimir Paleshchuk, work on the formation such a system was recently completed. The final point will be made after the completion of the “Salon of Security Equipment” in May next year. Then the list of exhibitions for the coming years will be approved. It will be possible to join this list only through a special decision of the federal authorities.
Today, powerful integrated exhibition centers are being formed in Russia, the first of which is the territorial exhibition center (TVC) “Russia” in the Moscow region, Mr. Paleshchuk said. Over time, this center will become one of the leading in the world. Another task of Russian organizers of military exhibitions and exhibitions of special equipment is to strengthen state support for advertising and exhibition activities. And finally, the third task is the formation of a unified advertising and exhibition field for the CSTO states.
Mr. Paleshchuk warned: one cannot count on a large number of Interpolitech participants, especially foreign ones. You shouldn’t set yourself up for making big profits: the products themselves cost little, unlike, for example, the same combat aircraft, and are produced in small series. The current exhibition will be attended by 372 Russian enterprises (the highest figure in recent years), which will present over 10 thousand exhibits, as well as manufacturers of special equipment from 12 countries.
The Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Bizon association of exhibition companies, Sergei Marichev, is convinced that Interpolitech can be considered a successful exhibition. In this business, it is believed that if an exhibition lasts five seasons, it is successful. 80% of companies that have participated in Interpolitech at least once become its permanent participants. This means that the directors of these companies get the desired result from the exhibition. The share of foreign participants is also growing. Every year, security forces select at least 20 samples at the exhibition for trial operation and subsequent implementation.
This year, the organizers of Interpolitech signed an agreement with the world's largest security exhibition, which is held in the city of Essen. And from 2009 a joint international exhibition will be held in Russia. The status of Interpolitech will undoubtedly increase. The organizers admitted that one of the important, albeit distant, goals is to demonstrate safety equipment for the Winter Olympics in Sochi.