News Story: Central Asian countries trade with China natural gas for weapons

HQ-9/FD-2000 missile launcher (File Photo)

China plans to sell HQ-9 surface-to-air missiles to its Central Asian neighbors of Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan to reduce the price it has to pay the two countries for natural gas, reports Kanwa Defense Review, a Chinese-language military magazine based in Canada, on Jan. 25.

In the past, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan were once the main production area for Soviet weapon systems during the Cold War era. Kazakhstan for example was a producer of torpedoes, missiles and other naval weaponry systems. In total, 11% of the Soviet Union's artillery and 18% of its tanks were produced in Kazakhstan. It was also responsible for manufacturing nuclear weapons for Moscow. Uzbekistan was the only state in the region capable to design and produce military aircraft.

After the collapse of Soviet Union, the five new nations began to sell those weapons systems to overseas markets. China was one of the buyers. In 1997, China was reported to have purchased 40 VA-111 Shkval torpedos from Kazakhstan.

Read the full story at Want China Times