Algeria has agreed to buy $7.5 billion worth of combat planes, air-defence systems and other arms from Russia, the head of Russia's state arms exporter Rosoboronexport said on Friday, according to Reuters. Russia also agreed to write off $4.74 billion of Algeria's Soviet-era debt during a visit by President Vladimir Putin to the North African oil-exporting country, the first by a Russian leader in half a century. "The total figure of the contracts which we signed was for $7.5 billion," Rosoboronexport chief Sergei Chemezov said in comments shown on Russian state television. "Practically all types of arms which we have are included, anti-missile systems, aviation, sea and land technology," he said, adding that, "Russian technology is in no way inferior in quality to western (technology) but in price it is 15-20 percent cheaper." Russia, one of the world's leading arms exporters with annual sales of more than $5 billion, is seeking to boost arms sales by widening its client base. Most of Russian arms export currently goes to China, India and southeast Asian states. --More 23 00 Local Time 20 00 GMT
