Russian arms sales thrive as Putin goes to Malaysia

<snip>Russian officials will be tying up a deal to sell 18 Sukhoi-30MKM fighter jets worth $900 million to Malaysia.

Helping to push up sales is Russia's policy of giving the buyer a relatively free hand on how to use its newly acquired firepower rather than placing too many strings on deals, as Western producers tend to do.

"A client of ours who bought fighter jets from the United States complained they were only good for parades," said a senior Russian arms exports official, who asked not to be named.

"This is because the Americans only delivered the jets but keep the missiles at their base. To use them, the country has to file a formal application and only after approval from Washington can the rockets be released," he said.

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