New Delhi, Feb 16: Defence Minister A K Antony will inaugurate the Fifth International Land and Naval Systems Exhibition ‘DefExpo 2008’ here today.

The four-day exhibition is being organised by Ministry of Defence in partnership with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).

The DefExpo will project the emergence of India as an attractive market as well as an investment destination for joint ventures in defence industry.

Dedicated to global land and naval systems business activity – from suppliers to manufacturers, technology providers to services – the DefExpo will also offer an opportunity to the international defence industry to promote and showcase their products and services.

International participation in the exposition is from over 30 countries, displaying an array of technology and new products.

The United States with 46 exhibitors is the largest participant while 43 exhibitors will represent France. Major participants include Russia and UK, besides Israel, South Africa, Germany, Italy, Czech Republic, Poland, Ukraine, Sweden and South Korea.

First time in Defexpo both Telecom and IT companies will showcase their products and services. Over 200 Indian private sector companies are expected to participate.

The DefExpo was conceptualised in 1998 with an objective to promote defence exports from India and exhibit the capabilities of Indian defence R&D and production.

The first exhibition was held in 1999 and subsequently in 2002, 2004 and 2006. (ANI)