Protesters gather at one of the world's largest arms and defence exhibitions

By PAISLEY DODDS

LONDON (AP) - Hundreds of protesters gathered Tuesday outside one of the world's largest arms and defence exhibitions, a one-stop shopping spree for governments and corporations looking to buy counterterrorism equipment and defence technology.

Everything from war ships to surveillance equipment went on display at the biennial Defence Systems & Equipment International show, where more than 300 companies are pitching their wares in a growing industry worth some $1 trillion US per year.

Surveillance advances are of particular interest in Britain, which is looking for ways to increase its security after bombings on July 7 killed 52 people and four suicide attackers. In a similar planned attack on July 21, explosive devices failed to detonate and there were no casualties.

"There are threats out there that you can't see, you can't smell and you can't hear," said Adam Thomas, a spokesman for the government's Defence Export Services Organization, which is helping to co-ordinate the exhibit. "People are looking toward the future in terms of what type of equipment they need. Most are interested in detection equipment now."

One such piece of equipment is the Sentinel II, a scanning machine that shoots out puffs of air and circulates the sample through the machine to test for explosives and other chemical agents. The machine, being tested at Heathrow Airport, costs about 100,000 pounds ($182,000).

Other machines can detect biological agents, such as ricin - a naturally occurring toxin made from castor beans. Many terror cells are experimenting with ricin, and one of the earlier fears in the July 7 attacks was that the weapons were chemical or biological.

"We have equipment that is sophisticated enough to pick up just 10 spores of anthrax," said John Saunders, a manager at the Britain-based Smiths, which specializes in detection equipment. "It's just a matter of cost and how much money countries want to spend."


Other equipment on display included warships, communication gear, disaster relief equipment and traditional arms, such as rifles and missiles. Around many of the displays stood foreign delegations, some of whom were generals and colonels in military uniform.

Protesters complained that the British government has invited representatives from countries with questionable human rights records. Among the some 60 countries represented were China - still the object of an arms embargo - Colombia, Iraq, Libya, Israel and Saudi Arabia.

The government considers standing arms embargoes before making the invitations and requires representatives to go through a strict procurement process that includes determining what the arms or defence equipment will be used for, said Thomas.

Still, hundreds of protesters gathered outside the convention centre, saying that the sales encourage international terrorism and fuel civil conflicts.


"Selling weapons to countries such as Saudi Arabia, Algeria and Israel only stands to fuel international terrorism," said Mike Lewis with the London-based Campaign Against Arms Trade, one of the groups protesting outside the show. "Britain, even though it has suffered two terrorist attacks recently, is sanctioning these sales by hosting this show."


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