Kiev  - Ukraine will continue arms deliveries to Georgia despite objections from Russia, a Ukrainian government official said Thursday.

"We have made deliveries (to Georgia) in the past, and we will continue as long as there are no bans (to the deliveries) from United Nations Security Council," said Serghy Bondarchiuk, director of Ukraine's state-owned arms exporter Ukrspetsexport, in a Sehodnia newspaper interview.

"If there are further (legal) orders from Georgia, we will consider them as well," he added.

Moscow was furious a year ago with Ukraine for selling Georgia anti-aircraft equipment, tanks, artillery, helicopters, small arms, and ammunition - all used against Russian forces during the 2008 war over the disputed South Ossetia.

The Ukrainian anti-aircraft kit in particular surprised Russian military planners, who had expected total air superiority over Georgia during the conflict, but in fact lost between 5 and 17 planes and helicopters to missiles guided by high-tech Georgian radars.

Ukraine had, prior to the war, sold Georgia at least one Kolchuga radar system described by its Donetsk manufacturers as a leading-edge technology capable of detecting even modern stealth aircraft.

The US considered sanctions against Ukraine in 2003 over suspicions it sold a similar Kolchuga system to then Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein.

The Russia-Georgia war provided "excellent advertising" for Ukrainian anti-aircraft technologies, and the east Ukrainian Topaz plant manufacturing the Kolchuga radar "has a long list of orders," Bondarchiuk told the newspaper.

Ukraine is rated the world's 10th largest arms-exporter, having sold some 800 million dollars of weapons and military equipment to foreign customers in 2008, up 12 per cent from 2007, according to data provided by the state-run arms exporter Ukrspetsexport.

Ukraine's customers are most often are nations lacking strong defence ties to US and NATO nations, or Russia.

Buyers of Ukrainian weaponry in recent years aside from Georgia include Syria, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Kenya, Chad, Sudan, Nigeria, Thailand and Myanmar.(dpa)