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Thousands of police and paramilitary troops were deployed in volatile Karachi ahead of an international defence exhibition being opened by Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf, officials said.
Around 230 companies from more than 50 countries, including the United States, France, Germany, China and Turkey, are participating in the annual show. Organisers said this year's theme was “Arms for Peace”.
Pakistan's nuclear-armed rival India has not been invited, an official said on Monday.
Military ruler Musharraf will open the four-day event amid tight security provided by more than 15,000 police and paramilitary soldiers, local government spokesman Salahuddin Haider told AFP.
“Security forces have been deployed not only at the exhibition site and sensitive areas in Karachi but on all routes leading to the venue,” he said.
Karachi has seen several deadly militant attacks linked to the Al-Qaeda network and other Islamic extremists.
Pakistani products on display at the defence expo include indigenous versions of the Russian T59 tank as well as a submarine built here under a transfer of technology agreement with France.
It will also exhibit a model of the JF-7 Thunder aircraft which is jointly made with China.
“We are expecting some big deals for our defence exporters during the exhibition,” Major General Syed Absar Hussain, chief of the Defence Export Promotion Organisation, told reporters.
Pakistan's military-run defence industry exports arms and ammunition worth 100 million dollars annually to countries in the Middle East, Asia and Africa, officials said.
